Tropes
by anthfan
Summary: Collection of one shots using typical tv show tropes featuring Felicity and Oliver. Chapter 1: 'posing as a couple' AND 'making out to avoid getting caught'. Chapter 2: 'getting hit on (attacked) at the club'. Chapter 3: 'car breaks down'. Chapter 4: 'sharing a bed'
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Had an idea for some new stories. A collection of one shots, each one dealing with a different over-used trope or cliche that can be found in just about every single tv show. I've got a couple of ideas of my own, but if you want to make suggestions either via PM or through reviews I'd be more than willing to consider them. **

**This one is more like two in one. The 'pretending to be a couple' trope and the 'making out to avoid getting caught' trope. **

**Let me know what you think! **

It had been one of their more simple plans. Oliver already had an invitation to the charity auction so they hadn't even needed to break in. All Felicity had to do was steal away for a few minutes and download the main hard drive of the host's home computer while Oliver made sure no one interrupter her.

Simple.

Of course it wasn't. In order for Felicity to even get access to the office where the computer was she'd had to go into the auction on Oliver's arm. As his date.

Oliver hadn't seemed phased by this. Felicity had played off his nonchalance, but inside she was a mess of emotions.

She'd argued with him that it wasn't a good idea. That they'd draw more attention to themselves, especially when he showed up with an unknown woman. Oliver merely dismissed her ramblings and said he was sure she could 'work her magic' on the websites if necessary.

The real reason she didn't want to do it was it was far too close to what she really wanted. She'd been attracted to Oliver from the moment he'd first stepped into her office with his fake grin and lame story. Now that she'd worked at his side for over a year and made it through some of the most intense experiences of her life with him she was full on in love with the man, and she was hopeless to stop it.

She'd never acted on it. As far as she knew Oliver only suspected a crush, if he suspected anything at all.

But now, standing in front of her bathroom mirror as she smoothed the dark green dress over her hips and straightened the straps she didn't know if she could keep up this charade much longer.

She caught her own eyes in the reflection and knew she was an open book right then. Felicity shut her eyes for a long moment. 'Lock it down, Smoak' she thought to herself and focused on her friend feelings for Oliver.

With a sigh she took one last look and grabbed the small clutch where it rested on the counter. It held her phone, a flashdrive, and her lipstick, but that's really all she'd need.

The sleek black BMW was waiting at the curb, Diggle standing by the back door, hands clasped in front of him looking every inch the professional chauffeur.

Felicity gave him a nervous smile. "You're going to do great." he assured her as he opened the door.

She had to admit she had been a bit surprised that Oliver hadn't come to the door himself or hadn't been waiting outside the car, but maybe he intended on playing up the playboy persona tonight. She hadn't expected to find the dark interior empty as she slid across the soft leather seats.

"There was...business." Digg said discretely, "We're going to swing by the club and pick him up."

Felicity nodded distractedly as her brain flew through the possibilities of what could have taken Oliver's attention. As far as she knew there was nothing other than what they were supposed to work on that night that demanded the Hood. It had been a long three months after Merlyn's device had been activated. There was even a point where she hadn't been sure Oliver was even going to continue as the Hood. But slowly he was returning to them.

The man they were trying to take down tonight had connections to Merlyn that Oliver thought needed to see the light of day; and she agreed.

She pulled her phone out as Digg drove across the Glades. There wasn't much she could do on the small device, but she was at least able to access her basic feeds. There didn't seem to be anything important pinging that she could find. A cold thought washed through her as she considered that Oliver and Digg might be hiding something from her.

She was so lost in thought she didn't recognize when the car slowed at the back entrance of the club or when the opposite door opened to allow Oliver to climb in.

It was a hand on her arm that finally jolted her back to the present. She looked over with a start to see him only inches from her. The black tux fit him like a glove and she could still see traces of water around his hairline from where he'd taken a shower.

"Oliver! Sorry, I was...just, thinking about...um tonight, you know." she hurriedly put her phone back in her clutch, fumbling with the clasp.

"You don't need to be nervous. This should be easy." he said with half a smile.

"Right. Easy." she gave a small laugh, and took a deep breath to center herself.

"So, where were you?" she mimed pulling a hood up over her head and he quirked an eyebrow at her before looking at his hands. "Because I didn't think we had anything else going on." she tried to keep the suspicion out of her voice, but she didn't think she was successful.

"I...I heard a robbery in progress come over the police scanner. It was only a couple of blocks away so..." he trailed off, and she couldn't stop the grin that spread across her face.

This was the first non-list related Hood activity he'd done and it made her heart swell.

"Well I guess I can forgive you for not picking me up at my door then." she couldn't hide her pride, and the answering smile she got was worth it.

Headlights from a passing car illuminated his face for a brief second and she saw traces of green paint near his ear that he'd missed. Before she could stop herself she'd licked her thumb and had reached over to begin scrubbing it away.

"You missed some..." she couldn't go on though once it registered with her what she'd just done. "Oh god. I just licked my finger and cleaned your face like you were a little kid. Oh god." her hand was still raised, her thumb still frozen near his temple as the rest of her hand curled around his jawline.

His eyes were locked on hers and she couldn't read his expression.

She let out a small gasp when his had wrapped around hers and lowered it slowly.

"Thanks for looking out for me." he said softly, and she relaxed.

As she settled back in the seat he still hadn't released her hand. She began to draw it back to her lap but his grip tightened.

"Thought I should get used to holding my girlfriend's hand." he said with a smirk, as he emphasized the word 'girlfriend'.

Her stomach flipped so hard it made her breath catch. Felicity looked out the side window as she fought for control. He couldn't know how much his words had affected her.

"You ok with this?" he asked quietly and she didn't know if he meant the hand holding or the entire night ahead of them.

"Yeah," she managed to croak out, hating how shaky she sounded, "Easy, right?" she repeated herself from earlier.

Suddenly the car was fully lit as they slowed to a stop in front of a very large mansion. There was a look on Oliver's face she couldn't place, but before she could question him Digg was opening the door.

Oliver let go of her briefly as he got out and straightened his tie and jacket. She took the hand he extended back into the sedan and exited carefully on shaky knees.

Oliver's hand slid around to rest on her lower back, his thumb brushing a trail of fire across her bare skin. As he leaned in towards her he was close enough that his stubble scraped across her cheek.

"You need to relax or you're going to stick out." he said low, doing nothing to slow her pulse or relax her at all. "And you look very beautiful. Green looks good on you."

His last statement made her breath catch and as he pulled back slightly she could see he'd said it on purpose. The double entendre was intended to shock her, maybe even make her laugh a bit since she said things like that all the time accidentally. And it had worked, as he propelled her forward with slight pressure on her back she took one last centering breath and threw him a slightly coquettish smile, falling into her role as Oliver Queen's newest conquest.

He flashed her his most brilliant playboy grin, but instead of making her knees weak it made her want to roll her eyes. She stepped in closer to him, her shoulder brushing his suit jacket as they walked up the steps.

There were the normal introductions and then mingling with people she didn't know. Oliver made the rounds and she learned the layout of the house, noticing the darkened hallway where she knew the office was located. She'd downed half a glass of champagne quickly to further steady her nerves. She may not be a complete mess any longer, but Oliver's constant touch was enough to drive anyone crazy.

They planned on sneaking off after the cocktail hour, before dinner was served. However, people were wandering everywhere and there was never a good opportunity to make their way down the hall. As the time quickly approached to head into eat she was getting more and more nervous.

The older couple Oliver had been speaking with stepped away and they had a moment of quiet. He pulled her close and leaned down, brushing her hair off her neck as his hands spanned her waist. "We're going to have to go with plan B." he whispered in her ear, making her shiver.

She nodded quickly in an attempt to cover up her reaction. Plan B meant that she'd excuse herself during dinner and do the download. It wasn't the best plan because it meant she'd have no back up, but it seemed like it was the only one they had.

Dinner was horrible. They were placed at a table with three other couples, all of whom were older and had known Oliver's father. One woman in particular kept looking at Felicity with complete disdain and didn't hold back from making passive aggressive comments. It took everything within her to not snap back something snarky about her degree from Stanford and exactly how she could ruin the old bat's very comfortable life if left alone with her husband's bank account for five minutes. Oliver must have noticed the white knuckle grip she had on her dinner fork because he lowered a hand over her knee and rubbed what he must have thought were soothing circles on her sensitive skin.

A flush rose in her chest at his touch and she gulped greedily from her water glass to try and calm herself down. Now seemed like an excellent time to do what they came here for.

Felicity cleared her throat and picked up her clutch. "If you'll excuse me, I'm just going to go find the ladies room." she said as evenly as possible.

Oliver rose as well and pulled out her chair. His eyes caught hers as she moved to step around him. She lifted up on her toes and, because it was expected, and because she could, she brushed her lips over his cheek. "It'll be fine." she said so only he could hear.

Her heart pounded now for an entirely different reason as she slipped silently out of the dining room.

The main foyer was round and had multiple hallways leading from it like the spokes of a wheel. She already knew from the blueprints she'd pulled up earlier in the week that the 'spoke' next to the one where the office was had a small powder room. It wouldn't seem that unlikely that she'd gotten a bit lost on the way.

The bar that had been set up during the cocktail hour had already been removed, and every trace of it having been there cleaned up by a seemingly invisible staff. There was one man on security detail at the front door but he was standing outside with his back to the entrance.

Two steps down the darkened hall she winced at the loud click-clack her heels made on the polished marble. Felicity reached down and slipped the shoes off before padding the rest of the way.

When she reached the door she realized her problem. It was locked.

She let out a sigh as her head fell forward to rest against the dark wood. Oliver had assured her the door would be unlocked.

Panic crept in as she studied the obstacle in front of her. If they didn't get this information tonight they'd have to come up with something much more elaborate, and something that would probably involve arrows and blood and people getting hurt.

Felicity crouched down and looked at the door handle. It appeared to be a standard lock, she'd never actually picked a lock before, but maybe it wasn't very difficult.

She reached into her hair and pulled out two of the bobby pins that were holding her elaborate hairstyle in place.

The light was only slightly better down here because a low burning sconce was on the wall next to her, but it was still dim.

She concentrated as she inserted one of the pins and began to feel around. She thought there was something to do with a tumblr and maybe holding it in place while you did something else, but after a few minutes with cold sweat beginning to roll down her back she knew she had no idea what she was doing.

"Need a hand?" a deep voice said from right behind her, and her startled scream was cut off when a palm was clapped firmly over her mouth.

Fear made her lash out, she threw an elbow backwards, her legs kicked out and she wished she still had her heels on.

She was pulled firmly into the body of her attacker, "Felicity it's me!" a harsh whisper finally made it's way to her and she sagged in relief as she realized it was Oliver.

His hand fell from her mouth. She took a ragged breath and turned in his arms. "Don't scare me like that again." she told him

"You were taking a long time, I got worried." he countered.

Felicity forced herself to step back, "The door is locked!" she hissed, as she gestured towards the offending lock.

"Is that all?" he asked calmly and grabbed the handle before shoving it down in one sharp forceful move. She heard a loud click and then the door was being pushed open.

"Showoff," she muttered as she brushed past him, her attention now on what she needed to do.

Oliver stood by the door, her forgotten heels in one hand. Felicity settled herself in the plush leather chair and booted up the computer.

It didn't take her long to find the files they needed and begin the download. Her nerves were just about back to normal when Oliver suddenly sprung to attention and moved as close to the door as possible without exiting it.

"Someone's coming, hurry!" he said and she made a few more keystrokes before snatching up the flashdrive and hitting the power button on the computer.

She had just managed to make it to his side when he shoved her heels into one hand and grabbed her about the waist. "I'm sorry," he said, so sincerely and with so much weight that she stopped short.

And then his mouth was on hers.

She was too shocked at first to even respond.

It was hot and wet and good, so damn good. She couldn't stop the moan that started low in her throat as his tongue swept through her mouth. She could tell he was moving them, but she was so caught up in what his mouth was doing to her it didn't register what was happening until her back made contact with something solid.

Her eyes fluttered open as his lips moved across her jaw and then down her neck, and she realized they were now back in the hallway, pressed against the wall opposite the office.

His hand hitched her leg up to wrap around his thigh, the heat pooling low in her belly making her gasp, or maybe it was the way he was sucking on her collarbone.

She finally began to participate herself, and slid one hand into his suit jacket, the crisp white shirt allowing her palm to slide easily around to his back where she raked her nails and heard a growl emanate from him.

A thrill shot through her that she'd had such an effect on him. He made his way back to her mouth. The small whimpers she hadn't been able to suppress also seem to do something to him if the way he pulled her in tighter was any indication, as well as the deep rumble in his chest that she could feel as well as hear.

His hand had been stationary on her knee, but now it was making it's way down her thigh and disappearing under her skirt. It felt like sparks were being left where ever he touched her, and she grasped a handful of shirt as he kneaded the flesh near her hip bone.

A throat being cleared finally made them break apart. Felicity froze in place as a security guard stood just behind Oliver.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Queen, but this area is off limits for guests."

Felicity was aware of every centimeter of skin as Oliver's hand slid out from under her dress and then gently lowered her leg back to the floor.

He wrapped an arm around her waist and turned towards the man. "Sorry, just looking for a little privacy." he said lasciviously and she couldn't hold back the shudder that went through her.

The guard held out a hand in obvious invitation for them to leave. When they got back to the foyer Felicity stopped Oliver with a hand to his chest. "I'm just going to go...freshen up." her voice sounded foreign to her ears, and she didn't dare look him in the eye.

"Hurry back, babe." he said, his voice sounding perfectly normal.

When she was within the safe confines of the powder room she sat unceremoniously on the closed toilet lid and let her head fall into her hands. What had just happened.

She knew it was a cover. She knew he had only done it to keep them safe, but surely even Oliver couldn't fake it that well. He'd never let on that he'd felt anything beyond friendship for her. Tears pricked her eyes as she recalled what they had just done. It had felt amazing, more than she could have ever dreamed it could have been. But if it was just acting for him she'd be mortified.

Felicity slid her shoes back on and pushed herself to her feet. The reflection staring back at her in the mirror was of a woman who had been thoroughly ravished. Her hair had managed to make it through unscathed, but her skin was flushed, her dress askew, and her lipstick long gone.

She ran cold water over her shaking hands and fixed her makeup as best she could. When she straightened the straps on her dress she could see a hickey forming and her stomach flipped. You don't accidentally leave a hickey.

She walked out of the room still in a slight daze. Was it possible Oliver had feelings for her too?

The security guard stood sentry in the foyer, she could feel his eyes on her as she made her way back to the dining room.

Oliver feigned surprise when she appeared back at the table. The woman who had been unable to hide her disapproval all night said something to her husband in a not so subtle stage whisper about proper decorum and manners and Felicity felt her cheeks redden.

Oliver pulled her chair out again, and she sat down in relief. "I thought I had lost you." he said easily,

"Just got a little turned around." she said quietly and gathered enough courage to slide her eyes up to his.

His pupils were still dark and wide, and the emotion brewing behind them was too much for even him to hide.

Her breath hitched, but she was saved from whatever she'd been about to say when the host took the microphone and began the auction part of the evening.

As to not arouse suspicion they were forced to stay until it was over. Oliver even had to made a few half hearted bids.

He hadn't touched her the rest of the time they sat at the table, something that she was both grateful for and regretted.

When they were saying their goodbyes his hand found the small of her back again, and the shock she felt when he made contact seemed stronger than ever.

Diggle pulled up and she crammed herself against the far side of the seat when she climbed in the car.

Oliver sat normally and pretended he hadn't noticed her actions.

"Any success?" Digg asked after he'd gotten back behind the wheel and began to follow the long line of cars off the property.

"Yeah," Oliver said tightly

"Any problems?" there was concern in his voice, having picked up on Oliver's tone.

"No. Everything went fine." Oliver replied, and Digg knew better than to challenge him any further.

Silence stretched between them as her nerves grew.

Digg parked around the back of Verdant and she was out of the car and halfway across the parking lot before he'd turned the car off.

She punched in the security code as fast as she could and didn't even bother to hold the door for them as she clattered down the stairs, gripping the handrail tightly so she didn't trip.

When Oliver and Digg had joined her at a more sedate pace she already had the flashdrive out of her bag and plugged into the USB.

"I'll start going through this now. No need for you guys to stick around." she said with a dismissive wave over her shoulder as if she really thought that was going to be enough for Olive to leave.

She forced her trembling fingers to do what they were supposed to as she heard Digg say his goodnights and then exit. She knew Oliver hadn't left though.

"Felicity," he began, slowly "We're going to have to talk about this."

"Why?" she said immediately, "It was just a cover right? That's what you're going to say. That it was just a cover so we wouldn't get caught and it didn't mean anything, and we got what we went there for so yay for us and now can I please just get back to doing this so I'm not here until the wee hours of the morning." she lost breath as she finished.

Her hands slid off the keyboard as he turned her chair slowly and forced her to face him.

"Yes," he answered and her heart dropped, any tiny sliver of hope she'd had that he'd felt something too had just disappeared and she tried to keep her eyes from welling up.

"And no." he continued, "Yes I kissed you as a cover, but it did mean something."

Her heart must have stopped. She knew she had stopped breathing.

Ever so slowly she lifted her gaze until she met his eyes, and she knew he wasn't lying.

"I didn't expect you, Felicity Smoak. And you're dangerous." she knew she contorted her face in confusion because she didn't understand at all what he was saying.

His hand came out to tangle with hers and pulled her upright, "You're dangerous because you make me feel, and with...all of this," he said, looking around them, "I don't know if feeling is a good thing."

"It's always a good thing." she said immediately and then felt her face go red.

His hand brushed over her cheek and she leaned into his touch.

"I need some time." he said softly. When she looked at him she knew he meant it, she knew this was him trying.

"Ok." she answered, and she meant this too. She could be patient, she just needed assurance that this wasn't one sided, and he had just given her that.

She reached a hand out and smoothed down the front of his jacket, "You should go, really, I'm just going to get this uploaded and set up some search parameters." she assured him.

"You sure?" he asked

"Yes. I'm sure." she said and purposely stepped away from him to sit back down in her chair.

"Ok, goodnight."

Oliver was halfway up the stairs when he stopped and turned back to look at her. "Oh, and Felicity, that wasn't a line earlier." there was a quirk of his lips as he stared down at her. "Green does look good on you."

She gaped at him for a long moment before a wicked thought entered her mind. "I'm going to hold you to that."


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: This turned from the 'hit on at the club', to 'attacked at the club' trope. Not really sure how that happened, other than I wanted something a little bit more than Oliver walking up to the drunk idiot and the usual 'The lady said she wasn't interested.' line. I know I've done 'Felicity in danger' before, but having it happen at the club, quite literally under Oliver's nose, seemed to add an element. **

**This got a bit heavier than expected. **

**Just a reminder that these are a collection of stand alone stories. This is in no way a continuation of the previous chapter. **

**Thanks to everyone who made suggestions for other tropes to work with. I've got quite the list now. Hope you enjoy, let me know what you think. **

Felicity sighed heavily and rubbed the bridge of her nose under her glasses. It was after midnight on a Friday night and she'd spent the past six hours in the sub level of Verdant trying to find a way around a firewall.

Oliver had hooded up earlier in the day and obtained the information she needed, but it was still up to her to wade her way through the data. Now that she knew who she was going after it was proving to be difficult.

She wasn't unfamiliar with all nighters, however, in the four months since half the Glades had been destroyed she'd pulled more of them than she cared to count. She knew it would be in everyone's best interest if she admitted defeat for the night and started fresh in the morning.

Felicity grabbed her phone and tapped out a quick text to Oliver letting him know her plans. He was putting in his requisite 'club owner' time upstairs and the last thing she wanted to do was go up and tell him in person.

She hit send and reached down to slide her work heels back on when a chime went off from behind her. Felicity swiveled slowly in her chair and spotted Oliver's phone laying on the table.

Her entire body slumped in defeat. With a groan she forced herself to get out of the chair and headed sullenly for the stairs. By the time she reached the door the thump of the bass matched the quick forming headache behind her eyes.

She still wore the same clothes she worn to work all day. As soon as she slipped out from behind the bar she knew she'd stick out like a sore thumb. Oliver was most likely up in his office or in the VIP section. Hopefully she'd find him quickly and be able to get out of there soon.

Roy Harper worked as a bartender now, and Felicity spotted him coming back to his post with an empty drink tray.

"That router having problems again?" Roy asked with a lifted eyebrow and an air of sarcasm in his voice that let her know he was suspicious of all the time she spent at the club.

"Something like that." she answered evenly, "Have you seen Oliver lately?"

Roy put the tray behind the counter and motioned over his shoulder towards the door. "He's probably out talking to the bouncers. There was a problem with some guys but I think it's been taken care of."

Felicity eyed the writhing mass of bodies on the dance floor, and the entrance to the club on the other side. She took a deep breath and squared her shoulders like she was going into battle.

"Thanks, Roy." she said without looking at him before stepping out onto the floor.

The lights swirled around her, making it hard to see, which made navigating through a sea of drunk, overly excited twenty-somethings, difficult. Felicity was jostled and bumped into more than once, and a wet trail down her shoulder let her know she'd need to soak the alcohol out of her shirt when she got home.

The D.J Oliver had hired seemed extremely popular, and when the current song ended and a new one began the club goers seemed to approve, if the deafening sound level was any indication. Felicity ducked a wild elbow and squeezed between two couples who were probably doing something illegal when a hand clamped down on her wrist.

Before she could turn she assumed it was Oliver, or maybe even Roy. A bright red strobe light flashed over her as she was looking down, and she realized immediately the hand didn't belong to anyone she knew.

Her eyes rose in an instant to the man in front of her. He was tall, almost taller than Oliver, with a cocky grin and eyes that seemed cold, even though he was smiling.

"Hey there, Barbie, where you heading to in such a hurry?" the man said smoothly as he took two steps closer to her.

Felicity tried to pull her arm out of his grip, but he held on tight. She pulled again and gave him an exasperated look. "I'm working. So if you don't mind, I'd appreciate it if you'd let me go."

Something flicked in his expression, and she couldn't hide her gasp as he tugged her towards him violently. She'd gone from annoyed to scared in a split second.

No one around her noticed anything was wrong. The crowd had closed around them and she couldn't see the bar or the door.

The harder she tried to get out of his hold the more force he exerted. When his free hand came up to wrap around her waist she'd had enough. Felicity remembered the training Digg had been drilling into her and she drew her arm back to throw her elbow into his midsection.

In an instant he'd anticipated her move. She had been pulled back to his chest with her arms crossed in front of her, her hand growing numb from the pressure he was putting on her wrist.

"Tsk tsk, sweetheart. You don't think I know all about you ladies and your 'how to attack a predator' moves." he hissed into her ear, as a cold fissure of panic began to lace its way through her. With her arms pinned she could barely move. Screaming would be futile; no one would hear her.

Suddenly she was being propelled forward, she tried digging her heels in and refusing to move, but he merely wrapped his arm around her waist and lifted her in front of him, and no one noticed a thing.

There weren't many dark corners in Verdant, Oliver had made sure of that when he had designed the space. However, as they made their way off of the dance floor Felicity knew where he intended to take them.

The hallway to the bathroom had a small alcove with the door to the janitorial closet, and it was past the entrances to the restrooms. No one would be going any further down that hallway.

Felicity swung her feet and tried to kick him in the shins, the ankles, even higher if she got lucky. She was dropped hard on her feet, one ankle buckling slightly before he grabbed her pony tail and twisted it viciously. Her neck was bent at a harsh angle where all she could see was the ceiling.

"Stop fighting, Barbie and all of this will go a lot smoother." he whispered darkly. She could feel his lips and tongue on her neck and fought the urge to vomit.

The blood rushing to her head was almost deafening. Felicity tried to keep her fears tramped down, knowing her only chance was to find an opening and make an escape.

A trio of drunk girls passed them in the hallway, but no one spared her a glance. She could see the door to the women's room as they went by and bile rose in her throat.

Suddenly she was released and shoved violently into the closet door, the handle pushing painfully into her ribs. Lighting was almost nonexistent down here and she could only just make out his dark form.

She lashed out as he approached, but he caught her fist before it could connect, squeezing the same wrist he'd held before until she was forced to cry out in pain.

The tiny bit of control she'd managed to hang on to slipped and she screamed for help as she tried to attack him again.

He laughed.

Tears ran unchecked down her face and the air around them seemed to still. All she could hear was her own ragged breathing and the sound of his shoes scraping across the floor as he stepped in closer.

The dance floor, Oliver, even Roy seemed miles away now. She was literally feet from safety and she'd never felt more frightened or more alone.

"You think I haven't done this before?" the casual way he spoke sent a chill through her, "This is easy."

Her entire body jumped as he tore her shirt in two. As soon as she felt his hand on her bare skin something snapped inside her. An overwhelming need for survival welled up and she fought back.

He may be able to over power her, but she wasn't going to give up.

Somehow she got a hand loose and managed to rake her nails down the side of his face. His roar of outrage preceded the back handed slap she received in return, but even as she was tasting blood in her mouth she didn't regret it.

She tried to knee him in the groin. He just laughed darkly as he shoved her legs apart, pushing her further into the wall. Never had she been as glad to have chosen pants to wear that morning as she was just then.

With her legs unusable she twisted her body trying to get away. An errant fist made contact with his nose. That earned her another slap which left her dazed as she fell to the floor.

Her head throbbed from the last hit, and try as she might, she couldn't get her feet under her. One of his hands grabbed her ponytail to lift her upwards and she had no option other than to go with it, the pain in her head almost blinding now. When his mouth was on hers she bit down hard on his lower lip and felt a bit of satisfaction as he howled in pain.

Felicity flinched from what she knew would be another blow, but it never came. His hold on her hair suddenly released and she fell into the corner of the door and the wall, sliding down until she came to rest on the floor.

There were sounds of a struggle, flesh meeting flesh, exhales of air, and grunts of pain.

"Did you touch her?" a growl came from the darkness that sounded suspiciously like the Hood. Except she couldn't make out the silhouette, but she could see Oliver now. Cool relief flowed over her.

They were in the hallway, her attacker pinned with an arm across his throat to the opposite wall. Oliver's fist raised up and came down with a punishing hit that made the man's knees sag, but he wasn't about to give up yet.

He laid a blow to Oliver's ribs which did nothing but enrage Oliver more. The retaliation was fast and brutal. Felicity flinched each time Oliver made contact.

They were on the ground now, her attacker almost prone beneath Oliver. The lights on the dance floor had changed their angle and every few seconds a beam of red and green would cut across the hall. Felicity could see blood and a look on Oliver's face she'd never seen before.

Then they were crowded out. Roy arrived along with two of the bouncers. It took both of them to pry Oliver off the man. Roy glanced up and saw her, still collapsed in the corner.

Through eyes that were becoming increasingly blurred she saw Roy get right in his boss's face. She'd never know what he said, but Oliver's eyes cut over her just as the light shone in from the dance floor. His face was mostly in shadow, but she couldn't miss the way his jaw got even tighter or how he lunged for the unconscious man. Once again, the bouncers were the only thing that could hold him back.

Roy was in front of Oliver one more time before he slipped down the hallway.

Felicity's breath was coming in short, hard bursts now and she couldn't do a thing to keep her body from shaking.

Her eyes fell on the man who'd hurt her. He didn't seem so big now that he was stretched out on the floor. She could see the deep scratches her nails had dug into his face, as well as everything Oliver had done to him. She wanted to look away, but she couldn't.

There was a touch on her arm that sent her scrambling backwards before she could actually understand what she was doing.

Oliver crouched in front of her, a deep furrow between his brows and an intensity in his gaze that had never been there before. His hands were held up in front of him, his mouth moving but the rush in her head was so loud she couldn't make out what he was saying.

She waited a beat and then threw herself at him. If he was surprised by her actions he didn't show it other than a moment of hesitation before his arms wrapped around her.

Felicity placed her face in his neck and shut her eyes tight; his heartbeat beneath her ear and the fistful of shirt she held on to all that was keeping her grounded right then.

She could feel one of his hands splayed across her back, anchoring her to him, the other cupped the back of her head, his fingers pulling lose hair away from her face.

He was talking to her, she could feel the rumble of his chest as he spoke, but she wasn't hearing a thing. All she knew was she was safe.

As she lay curled against him she allowed her mind to go blank. Thinking about what had just happened; about what had almost happened, was too much. At some point Oliver gently set her back long enough to drape his suit jacket over her shoulders. She looked down as his hands overlapped the lapels and caught sight of her torn blouse and a glimpse of her bra. Her stomach rolled and she placed herself right back where she had been.

All she could see was the blurred image of day old stubble along Oliver's jaw, and the edge of his shirt collar.

She could hear voices now, not just Oliver. Slowly she realized the music in the club had been turned off, and the space around them was brighter.

"Why don't you take her to your office, boss. I'll wait for the cops." she heard Roy say carefully, as if he didn't want to scare her with his voice.

Oliver's head dipped over hers, "I'm going to take you upstairs. You're safe."

Felicity managed a half a nod in response.

"Shut your eyes." Oliver said as he rose to his feet and lifted her easily along with him. She felt his weight shift and knew he was stepping over the body of her attacker. Felicity did as he said and turned her face ever further into his neck until she couldn't see a thing.

She wasn't aware of the journey from hallway to Oliver's office. When he tried to place her down on the leather couch she made a noise she didn't know she was capable of making and clung to him tighter. He didn't try again, just sat down with her in his lap.

They sat in silence for a long moment. She actually felt him swallow before he finally spoke.

"Felicity," he started off slow and quiet, "Are you hurt?"

When she didn't answer he ever so gradually pushed her forward until he could see her face. She let out an involuntary whimper that she'd be ashamed of later.

His hand raised and carefully coasted over her cheekbone. She tried not to flinch but she couldn't hide it and she was aware enough to see how his eyes darkened when she did.

"I tried...I tried to fight him off, to do what you taught me, but he was so strong..." she choked on a sob and Oliver's hand wove through her hair and pulled her into his chest again. The adrenaline was starting to wear off, but she didn't know if the shaking was from that or something else.

"You're safe." Oliver repeated as he stroked her head.

"You didn't have your phone, I tried to send you a text that I was going to leave for the night, but..." as the words tumbled out, Oliver's face shut down. His eyes fell closed and when he opened them he held her a bit tighter.

"I'm sorry," he said roughly

A memory flashed over her, rough hands on her skin, lips on hers, and she shuddered. "He was...he was going to..." she couldn't finish the thought though. Oliver's grip was almost painful now.

She could have sworn she felt Oliver's lips on her hair just before he spoke. "You're safe." She felt his breath ghost over her forehead and she pressed herself in even tighter as sobs shook her.

They could have sat there for five minutes or five hours, time meant nothing to her. A soft knock at the door broke the silence. Felicity looked up just as the door pushed open a few inches and Roy stuck his head inside.

"Sorry to bother you, but Detective Lance is here and he needs to..." Roy trailed off, as he took in Felicity's broken appearance.

"Send him in." Oliver said harshly.

Felicity sat up quickly and scrubbed palms over her wet face, before she slid purposely off of Oliver's lap until they were sitting side by side. Even though there was only a few inches of space in between them now she felt cold and alone. She huddled back into the couch, allowing the plush leather to surround her as a substitute for Oliver.

Detective Lance approached her carefully. She clutched the two sides of Oliver's suit jacket closer and wished she could spare a hand to push the strands of hair out of her face that had become loose during the struggle.

He made to reach out and touch her shoulder, but caught himself at the last second and pulled up a chair instead. She caught the way his eyes cut over her, not missing a thing, and she thought maybe she saw the same dark edge in his expression that she had seen in Oliver's.

"I'm sorry this happened to you, Ms. Smoak." he began, "Do you need to be seen by a medic?" After the Glades, her and Lance had come to a sort of understanding. You don't deactivate a seismic device with someone and not form a bond.

"I'll be fine." she whispered, hating how weak her voice sounded, but not being able to do anything about it.

Lance looked to Oliver for confirmation, which she found strange, but when Lance began asking questions about her attacker she forgot all about it.

She took a shaky breath and told him everything. At some point she let go of her death grip on the jacket and found Oliver's hand with hers and hung on to it. He turned his palm so their fingers could intertwine allowing her to tell Lance what had happened.

There was nothing left to her when she was done, tears had been silently falling down her face and she hadn't noticed. More than anything she wanted to leave, and sleep, and pretend for a little while that maybe all of this hadn't happened.

Lance looked at her sympathetically and tapped his closed notebook with a pen. His eyes held hers, before he looked down almost guiltily. "Thank you for your statement. We've been looking for this guy for a long time."

The air went still before Oliver tensed beside her. He was suddenly on his feet, face full of thunder as he glared down at Lance.

"You _knew_ about him?" Oliver growled, his voice deadly and sounding exactly like the Hood.

Lance sat back heavily but didn't rise. "There's been a serial predator trolling the club scene the past couple of months. Girls are usually too drunk or high to know what's going on. He takes them into a dark corner of the club, roughs them up...assaults them, and leaves before anyone can identify him."

The tension rolling off Oliver was palpable. He began to pace around the suddenly too small office, the cords of his neck muscles straining as he fought for control.

"You knew this piece of shit was out there and you didn't think to warn the club owners about him. Give us a chance to beef up security!" Oliver roared

Lance finally stood. "To be honest, most club owners wouldn't give two shits about something like that happening in their club. Most probably expect it goes with the territory." there was an edge to Lance's voice that hadn't been there before.

Oliver stalked forward until they were almost toe to toe, "I'm not most owners!" he shouted, "He came into my club, and hurt my..." he cut himself off abruptly before practically hissing the final part. "She got hurt because you didn't do you job!"

Felicity felt numb as the knowledge that this had happened to other women settled within her and that she had actually gotten off lucky. The bile rose in her throat and she knew this time she wasn't going to be able to stop it.

She made a desperate lunge for the designer titanium trashcan next to the desk. There hadn't been much in her stomach, but what was there was now being expelled violently. She heard Oliver and Lance both swear behind her and there was a flurry of movement.

She was aware of nothing else until Oliver's arm banded about her waist to support her weight and she was instantly grateful, the remaining strength she had completely leaving her.

"Here, sweetheart." Lance said gently as he pushed napkins in her hand. She couldn't help the thought that he'd said those same words in exactly the same way to Laurel when she was a little girl.

Felicity weakly wiped her mouth and took the bottled water the detective had in her line of sight, only barely managing to lift it to take a drink due to her shaking hands.

Lance rescued the bottle from her slack grip and rose to his feet. "She'll need to come into the station and sign an official statement, but that can wait a couple of days."

"She'll come in when she comes in." Oliver countered, his voice hard.

Felicity made a feeble attempt to interject her own opinion on the matter, but realized she didn't care enough and let it go. When she tried to push herself to her feet her ankle gave out on her, she couldn't help the soft cry of pain she let out.

Without a word Oliver swung her into his arms and headed back towards the couch.

"No." she said suddenly and he stopped immediately, "I...want to leave, I don't want to be here anymore."

"Then we leave." Oliver's tone was one of forced lightness

"Take care of her, Queen." Lance said suddenly. Tears pricked her eyes from his concern.

Oliver didn't answer, but she knew something went unsaid between the two men.

She wanted to tell Oliver to put her down, to let her walk out of there on her own, but she knew she couldn't. She had lost something, and she didn't know if she'd get it back, but for now she'd let Oliver absolve his guilt by doing this for her.

Lance opened the door for them and Digg was standing on the other side, his face stony.

Oliver and Digg exchanged a look she couldn't decipher.

"She ok?" was all Digg asked, what wasn't been said was much louder.

"She will be." Oliver answered,

Digg nodded once and gave her a supportive half smile, "The car is waiting out back."

She winced slightly as they made their way across the now empty dance floor, all the lights were on and the brightness hurt her eyes.

A few cops were left over, taking statements from some of the staff, but Felicity knew no one had seen anything.

Roy stood near the bar looking nervous. Oliver barely slowed as they approached him.

"Sorry if you're mad I called Mr. Diggle, but I thought he should be here. I understand if you think I overstepped..." Roy swallowed hard, but held his ground.

"You did the right thing, kid, just run it by me the next time." Oliver said and then immediately winced at his turn of phrase. Felicity shuddered at the thought of a 'next time'.

"You're okay," he whispered in her ear again. She wondered how many times he'd have to do that before she started to believe him.

They rode in silence, it wasn't until they paused and she heard Digg roll down the window to talk to someone that she realized they were at the security gate to the Queen mansion.

"Oliver..." she began

"You're not staying by yourself." he said in a tone that brook no argument.

Thea was waiting on the front steps in her pajamas.

As soon as Oliver stepped out of the car with Felicity in his arms she was upon them.

"Is she alright? Roy texted, he was worried, and upset. I think he thought he should have stopped it or..." she trailed off as she caught sight of her brother's stormy expression. Thea took a deep breath and started again. "Is there anything I can do?"

"Something to change in to would be great." Oliver said and Felicity could almost feel Thea's eyes on her as she took in Oliver's jacket, and the trailing ends of her torn blouse.

"Oh god," Thea whispered in horror.

Felicity couldn't help the swell of shame that rose up inside her and turned as far into Oliver's chest as she could.

"I'm sorry, I'm so...sorry." Thea said quickly, "I'm just going to go get...I'm going to go. I'll be right back."

Oliver was silent as he climbed the steps to the second floor. Felicity had always wanted to see the inside of the Queen mansion, she just never thought this was how it would come to be.

Her head was throbbing now, and she was beyond exhausted. Her eyes slid shut several times, but she felt the hesitation as Oliver went to lower her down.

She blinked rapidly and lifted her head to look around. The room was massive, with dark detailed wood working and heavy drapes.

Oliver sat her gently on the bed and knelt in front of her as he allowed his arms to slide from around her although he let them rest on either side of her hips.

A brief frisson of panic laced through her when she lost contact, and she shivered from imaginary cold without his warmth surrounding her.

"You're safe here."

She thought maybe this was how he was going to start every sentence to her now. The pinched lines around his eyes seemed deeper than ever. "I need to clean up your face." he said,

She drew back slightly at the reminder of her injuries. But before she could respond there were two soft taps on the door.

"Ollie?" Thea said quietly as she pushed into the room. She held a pajama set in her hands.

"Thanks, Thea." He went to take the clothes from her and then paused.

"Felicity, do you want Thea to help you change? I can go get what I need to..."

He didn't get any further because the thought of him leaving her alone, even with his sister was something she couldn't bare to consider.

"No!" was ripped from her throat so forcefully she clapped a hand over her mouth in surprise.

"Ok!" Oliver said quickly as he crowded even closer to her, the pajamas forgotten on the floor. "I won't leave."

"I'll get what you need." Thea said before she slipped silently out the door.

"I'm sorry. I just...I don't know why I feel like this. I feel like I'm not even in my own body, or like it's about the fly apart around me...I don't want Thea to think I don't like her. I do. I mean I don't know her well, but she seems like a nice kid, and..." There was a small hint of a smile on Oliver's face that stopped her ramble.

She took a long deep breath and waited for him to explain.

"You sound a little bit more like you." he said, and she gave a broken smile in return.

He gathered up the donated pajamas and laid them in her lap. "Do you want help? I can..." she could see the control he fought for.

"I can do it." she said with false confidence. But when he turned to leave she reached out a hand in fear. Her fist closed over his sleeve in desperation. "Just...just turn around ok. Don't leave." His mouth was a tight, thin line as he found her hand with his and gave it a squeeze before very deliberately turning so his back was to hers.

He was only a few steps away, she could reach out and touch him if she wanted to, but some irrational terror made her hands shaky and her breath increase as she struggled to undo her pants.

Just as they fell to the floor she was struck with a memory of her legs being forced apart. She gagged, and sat heavily on the bed, her breath coming in great heaving gasps.

"Oliver..." she tried to say, but she's not sure it was at all intelligible. He spun in a flash.

Without a word he slipped her feet into the pajama pants and pulled them over her knees. She let him help her up and managed to tug them up the rest of the way. As the suit jacket was slid off her shoulders her breathing evened out and she stared at a spot across the room. Her ruined shirt was next and she didn't blink as she stood in front of him in only a bra.

The pajama top was light blue and soft. She thought maybe he paused before he began to close the buttons, but she couldn't be sure. He stepped away for only a second and then her arms were being moved again. A familiar scent floated up and resonated with her. When she looked down she saw Oliver zipping up the front of a grey hoodie. The same grey hoodie he'd worn out of the basement this morning after taking a shower. The fabric completely engulfed her, but it was warm and it smelled like Oliver and that's all that mattered.

Felicity sat back down on the bed just as Thea reentered. She laid an assortment of first aid supplies and a glass of water on the bedside table before she gathered up the discarded clothes and gave Oliver a sad smile and left again.

Exhaustion struck hard and fast. Felicity was almost swaying on the spot as Oliver cleaned a small cut on her cheekbone and laid a cold pack along her temple. She knew there would be more bruises tomorrow. He shook two pills out of a prescription bottle and tipped them into her hand. She threw them back dutifully with the glass of water Thea had brought.

When that was finished he knelt before her. Her vision swam as she lifted a hand and brushed it along the side of his face. His eyes fell shut at her touch. "Thank you." she said softly

His eyes flew open and locked on to hers. The look was unreadable. "You can't...you can't say that." he said throatily

"Thank you," she repeated. His head fell forward until it touched her knee and rested there for a long moment. Hands clenched the bed covers tightly and then he was rising above her.

"Lay down and rest." he said stiffly, trying not to sound as harsh as he did.

She did as he asked because she knew he was on the brink. She knew he wanted to do nothing more than to go destroy something, or someone right then, but he was doing his best to keep it under wraps for her.

The pillows were perfect, and the sheets the softest she'd ever felt, but when he pulled the duvet over her and took a step back that same fear returned.

"Please don't leave." she said shakily.

"I'm not going anywhere. I'll be right back." he assured her, and then disappeared from her sight. She laid in stiff silence with her eyes shut tight until he returned. A door shut close by and she heard a hard crash. She jolted at the sound and then lay still again, eyes open in fright until she heard him come back into the room.

If she had to guess, she's say there would need to be some dry wall repair in his bathroom soon.

He showed no noticeable signs of anger when she saw him again. He grabbed the back of a chair and began to drag it towards the side of the bed.

"Please," she said again, and when their eyes met she knew he was aware of what she was asking. She was crossing lines; obliterating them really. She didn't care.

The air grew heavy around them. She knew this was too far. Too much. Too soon. Oliver had barely touched her before this night and now she wasn't sure if she could function without him next to her.

It was a testament to how far he'd come that he didn't say another word. Instead he crossed around the foot of the bed. She felt the mattress dip as he got in and didn't hesitate to bring himself up directly behind her.

Felicity let out a breath she didn't know she'd been holding as his arm wrapped around her waist and pulled her in closer.

"Thank you." she said again, because it needed to be said. He laid his forehead on her shoulder for a moment.

She felt around until she could grasp his hand, her thumb ran lightly over the ragged, torn flesh of his knuckles. She didn't know if he'd done it just now, or earlier when he'd saved her.

He didn't pull away when she laced her fingers with his and tucked them up to rest between her breasts. With a long sigh she settled back against him.

"Sleep," he whispered in her ear, and she shuddered.

She only woke once from a nightmare. She was fighting off her attacker again. Pain in her wrist flared and when she woke up gasping she saw Oliver poised above her, his hands holding her arms so she couldn't strike him.

"Oh god!" she gasped, arms falling limp as he let go and rolled to his back, pulling her with him.

"You're safe." he said, over and over again, until she fell back asleep listening to his promise.

In the morning the bed was empty. She sat up with a start, her head aching and the side of her face feeling twice its normal size.

Oliver wasn't in the room, but Digg was. He stood sentry by the window his back to the bed although he turned when he heard her.

"Hey," he said gently, like you would speak to a wild animal that was about to attack you, "How do you feel?"

She pushed lank hair out of her face and sat back against the pillows with a sigh. "Like I went two rounds with you and came out the loser." she said and then immediately regretted it. "Sorry, bad analogy."

Digg waved her off and took a few more steps closer. Her hands twisted in the sheets as her eyes darted about the room. She had hoped this need to have Oliver near her would have abated overnight but it didn't seem to have.

"Where...uh...where is he?" she tried to sound nonchalant, but knew she failed miserably.

Digg's eyes darkened for a second, "He had some business to take care of."

Silence stretched between them, "The guy who attacked me has an arrow in him now, doesn't he?" she finally asked.

"That is the most likely scenario." Digg confirmed

"Good." she said simply, and she meant it.

She yawned widely and felt her eyes begin to drift shut again. "Sorry," she said to Digg, "You really don't have to babysit me."

"Go back to sleep, Felicity." he said with a low chuckle.

Muffled voices woke her the next time and she was able to crack one eye in order to see Oliver and Digg talking quietly by the door. After Digg had left she saw Oliver step into the bathroom and emerge a few minutes later in a t-shirt and sweatpants.

There was no hesitation this time. He got in right next to her and slid an arm beneath her. "You're a terrible fake sleeper." he admonished. She felt her cheeks flush, but it didn't stop her from rolling towards him and laying her head against his chest.

"Oliver..." she began but he lay a finger across her lips and she couldn't help the sudden intake of air at the contact.

"Later." he vowed. She nodded her consent and let her eyes fall shut again, wondering if he could possibly be thinking about the same thing she was. As his fingers stroked over her hair she hoped he was.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Really you are all waaaaaayyy too kind. Thanks for the reviews/follows/favorites. I love it! **

**This is the 'car breaks down' trope. And I guess maybe the 'lost in the woods' trope. But I'm thinking that could be a fun story by itself. Hope you enjoy. Let me know what you think. **

**-Trope #3: Car breaks down**

Felicity's fear of flying had never been an issue. Until now.

Somehow she'd managed to make it twenty five years without having to travel by plane. Cars, buses, and trains were her friends. She'd even gone on a cruise once after her college graduation, and had the passport to prove it. But she'd never flown.

Rationally she knew it was safe. She knew it was really no different than sitting on a bus seat, or driving her own car, but the mere thought of getting on a tube weighing thousands of pounds that somehow managed to stay in the air made her want to curl up in a ball and hide.

The problem now was that Oliver had just walked into the lair and told her their next mission was out of town and she'd need to be ready to get on the Queen jet by noon the next day.

Her mouth went dry and she sat completely still in her chair, fingers frozen in place over the keyboard.

Oliver busied himself behind her with something, and it was Diggle who noticed her reaction.

"Everything alright, Felicity?" he asked easily

She jolted at his words, blinking rapidly before she adjusted her glasses and tried to turn her focus back on her work. "What? Yeah, I mean, sure. It's just..." her voice was trembling. She clenched her hands into fists and shut her eyes tight as she tried to rein in her emotions. Oliver had abandoned whatever he was doing. She knew without looking that he was standing behind her. "I can't fly." she said as fast as possible, and slowly turned her chair so she could face them.

Oliver looked confused and Digg slightly bemused.

"What do you mean you can't fly? You on the terrorist watch list and didn't tell us?" Digg asked with a laugh.

Felicity tried to give him a smile, but she'd heard this before. People who didn't understand her fear meant well, but they didn't know how it made it her feel. Even now, just the thought of getting on a plane was making her begin to panic.

"I can't fly. I'm terrified of planes. I know it's ridiculous, and silly, and intellectually I understand the principles behind flight, and I know safety has been improved, and that statistically speaking I'm more likely to die in a car crash than a plane crash, but I can't, ok, I just can't." she spoke in a rush, tears pricking her eyes. She hated to look so weak, especially in front of Oliver, but he expected her to be on that plane tomorrow and she just couldn't do it.

She could feel Oliver's eyes burning into her as she awaited his response.

"So we'll drive then." his reply was calm and easy, and nothing like what she expected

The relief she felt was palpable. She couldn't help the woosh of air that came from the lungs or the hand she placed over her rapidly beating heart.

"Sorry, Felicity, I shouldn't have joked with you." Digg said sincerely

She waved him off, "It's ok, you didn't know."

"It'll take longer to get there now." Oliver stated as he made his way back over to the table where he had been working.

"Address?" she said simply as she swiveled in place and brought up a map on her screen.

A few key strokes later she had their time. "Five hours forty two minutes, in light traffic." she announced, wincing slightly since she knew if they took the jet they'd be there in under two hours, door to door. "There's an alternate route as well that takes an extra hour, but it cuts through the mountains, so I'm not sure we want to go that way."

"The normal route will be fine." Oliver assured her, "I'll pick you up at seven. That should put us there in plenty of time."

"Thank you, Oliver...really." she needed him to know how much this meant to her.

He didn't look her way as he answered and part of her wondered if he was actually annoyed with the change of plans. "It's fine."

She spent the rest of the day working as hard as she could as a way to make up for the inconvenience of driving over flying. As Digg and Oliver prepared the equipment they needed to take with them she made sure she had everything she could possibly need. One of the last things she remembered to grab was a hook up for satellite internet in case they hit a dead spot on the cell signals.

Feeling that she had thought of everything she sat the three black soft sided cases containing her tech beside Oliver's weapons and called it a night.

True to his word Oliver was waiting outside her apartment at seven the next morning.

"Where's Digg?" she asked as she approached the vehicle and noticed it was empty.

Oliver took her garment bag from her as he loaded the trunk. "Driving was going to put him back too late to go to his nephew's ball game. I told him we could handle it."

Felicity's stomach did a funny flip as she realized she'd now be stuck in a car with Oliver for the foreseeable future as well as his only back up.

"Are you sure that's the best idea?" she asked nervously as she made her way to the passenger's side.

"We'll be fine Felicity." he said, but the slight edge to his tone let her know he didn't want to discuss it any further.

They rode in relative silence for the first two hours. Traffic wasn't too bad leaving Starling City, and then it was mostly open road, until they approached the next big town. The long line of red tail lights made her take her phone out and pull up traffic info.

Oliver sighed heavily and drummed his fingers on the steering wheel as the powerful engine rumbled beneath them, angry it wasn't being allowed to do what it was made for.

The red streak on the map went on for miles. A little more digging and she discovered why.

"Uh, Oliver..." she began warily, "You're not going to like this."

He didn't say a word, just cut his eyes sideways at her.

"There's a Hazmat spill ten miles ahead. The road is shut down indefinitely."

Silence fell between them and she studied the ticking muscle in his jaw.

"Didn't you say there was another way?"

Felicity studied the map and saw the turn off was only half a mile ahead.

"If you don't mind driving illegally on the shoulder we could get off at the next exit."

His answer was to pull sharply to the right and ignore the honks of the other angry drivers as he made his way to the exit ramp.

Twenty minutes later there were no other cars to be seen as they passed beneath a sign welcoming them to a national forest.

"This is nice." Felicity said in relief. The tall pine trees passed in a continuous green blur as the road twisted gently. "Isn't this better than thousands of other cars, and billboards everywhere? All that smog. The congestion. No nature, just glass and steel. It gets old sometimes, don't you think?"

Oliver didn't reply at first. Felicity pulled her gaze from the window to look over at him. He gripped the steering wheel tightly, and there was a tenseness about him that hadn't been there before.

"What's wrong?" she blurted out before she could stop herself. Oliver rarely shared how he was feeling. Asking usually only made him more irritable she had learned.

He didn't answer for a long moment. "It reminds me of the island. I like the city better."

She was stunned. Oliver never talked about the island. Never. The only way it was mentioned was in the abstract. She had no idea how to proceed. Should she pretend like he hadn't said it, or should she push him for more.

She studied him quietly for a moment before she made her decision. "Really? I would have thought the island would have had more palm trees. And coconuts." she was being deliberately sardonic and she held her breath waiting to see if it was going to blow up in her face.

Felicity didn't even think she was breathing until she saw the corner of Oliver's mouth lift in a half smile. "Don't forget the little umbrellas that go in your drink." he countered. She couldn't hide the smile that broke across her face.

"My apologies." she teased back, amazed that he was doing this. She knew it wasn't a front. There was no way he could have pretended to joke about his time on the island. She knew it had been horrific. One look at the scars on his body was enough to see that. One minute of watching him fight was enough to see he hadn't been alone there either. Someone had taught him how to fight, how to shoot, how to kill.

This was huge. This was the tiny first step, and it made her heart clench as she realized she was the first person he'd shared this with.

His grip on the wheel relaxed some she noticed, as the charged feeling in the air dissipated.

She let her head fall against the window and let the quiet and the purr of the engine lull her into a light sleep. A hard sudden jolt, Oliver's abrupt application of the brakes, and the seat belt cutting across her chest woke her up.

She didn't even have time to let out a scream as she was thrown violently forward and back again, the seat belt kept her in place, but wasn't able to stop her head from hitting the window sharply. The air bags deployed, taking her breath from her and then she could hear nothing.

Her ears rang as she focused on taking another breath. Finally, right before panic set in she was able to breathe deep.

"Felicity!" Oliver called from next to her although she couldn't turn her head to see him.

"Oliver...what happened?" she said slowly, as she raised her arms to push the deflating airbag away from her face.

"We hit a deer." he answered gruffly. She could hear him struggle in the seat next to her.

The next thing she knew her door had been yanked open. Oliver was shoving the airbag out of the way and leaning across her to undo her seatbelt. She winced as it was peeled away from her, she knew she'd have bruises from where it had locked her in place.

Oliver's hands cupped her face as he peered into her eyes. "Are you alright?"

She swallowed heavily at having him so close. Her hand closed over his wrist as if by it's own volition. "I think I hit my head on the window." she said and tried to touch the spot that throbbed painfully but he beat her to it.

Her eyes fell shut as his fingers combed through the hair above her ear. He was gentle, but she still winced when he found the sore spot.

"Sorry." he said softly, his fingers stilling. "You've got a bump, but it doesn't seem too bad."

"How's the deer?" she asked, more for something to say, because she needed to be distracted from his nearness.

His head dipped down for a moment and he shook it silently in mock amusement. The hand that had been in her hair slid down to cup her cheek. "You're in a car accident and the first thing you do is ask about the deer?"

"I like animals." she said weakly in her own defense.

Oliver backed out of the car, holding his hand out so she could exit as well. She gripped him tightly as she got to her feet, her knees a bit wobbly from what had happened.

A hand on her waist guided her towards the rear of the car where he pushed her backwards to lean against the trunk. He stayed close until he knew she wasn't going to collapse and then he stepped away.

Felicity drew in a long breath and ran a hand through her hair before taking a good look around.

Oliver had managed to pull off onto a low shoulder. Skid marks marred the asphalt behind them, and she could just make out the haunches of the now dead deer that lay partially in the brush.

She couldn't see the total damage that had been done to the car, but the front windshield had been shattered and she was fairly certain the car would not be able to be driven.

Felicity took a good look at Oliver and saw a thin trickle of blood running from a scrape above his eye.

"You're hurt." she said immediately and was in his space before she could think. Her hand lifted to ghost over the injury, not stopping when he flinched slightly and then grasped her wrist lightly with his hand.

"It's fine." his voice was tight, and when she looked at him quizzically the darkening of his pupils made her gasp softly.

She pulled her hand away like it had been burned and balled it in a fist in front of her. Oliver stalked away to inspect the car. She gave him a moment and then followed.

It was totaled. The entire hood was sunken in, shattered glass everywhere, and she knew it would be futile to try and start it.

Oliver swore under his breath and pulled his phone out of his pocket. She waited patiently while he scrolled through contacts and selected a number.

When he put the phone to his ear, Felicity searched her pockets for her own phone when she remembered it had been laying in her lap before the accident. She walked to the open car door and peered in not seeing anything at first. Then she spotted it, shattered on the floor board, the screen and the case smashed. With a long sigh she took it out and tried to turn it on, all the while knowing it wasn't going to work.

"Felicity do you have a signal?" Oliver asked

She held up her destroyed phone in response.

"I'll take that as a no then." Oliver ran a frustrated hand over his hair and looked up and down the road pointlessly.

"Oh!" she exclaimed excitedly, "Pop the trunk! I'll have us out of here in no time."

Oliver looked at her skeptically but did as she asked.

She moved both their garment bags out of the way, as well as the long duffel style bag she knew held his bow and quiver. She spied two of her tech bags in the back and pulled them out before leaning back in to search for the third. Except there wasn't a third bag.

"Where's my other bag?" she asked, still half in the car as she felt around, wondering if it had slipped somewhere.

"What other bag? Those were the only two bags I saw sitting in the basement." Oliver replied.

Felicity slowly extracted herself from the car and looked from Oliver to the bags on the ground. "Tell me this is your idea of a joke." she said desperately

It was mostly a rhetorical statement. Oliver didn't really make jokes.

"Where's the third bag, Oliver!" she exclaimed. Felicity knelt by the two bags she had and began to open them even though she knew what she wanted wasn't going to be there.

Just as she expected she was right, the bag with her laptop was missing.

"No, no, no, no, no. This can't be happening." she muttered to herself as she searched through the trunk one more time.

"Felicity," Oliver said trying to get her attention, but she ignored him. If she didn't find that bag they were stuck.

"Felicity!" he said again, this time louder. His hand wrapped around her elbow and pulled her from where she had almost climbed into the trunk to look.

She shook him off and scraped a hand over the hair that was now falling out of her ponytail.

"What is so important about the third bag?"

Felicity took a deep breath and crossed her arms in front of her before she began talking, "The third bag had my laptop. But more importantly the third bag had the hook up for the satellite internet that we could have used as a hot spot for your phone to call us a ride and get us the hell out of here!"

"Are you sure you packed it? Maybe you thought you did and you forgot." Oliver's eyes flashed dangerously but she didn't notice. Felicity advanced on him until the dingy grey tips of her Chucks touched his heavy leather boots.

"I am _positive_ I put the third bag with the other. I'm not the one who screwed this up. _You're _the one who left it in the basement!" she had to crane her neck up to see him, but she wasn't going to back down, she knew she was right.

"If you weren't the one who was too af..." Oliver stopped himself before he could continue but the icy clench in her stomach told her what he was going to say. He was going to say 'If you weren't the one who was too afraid to fly none of this would have happened.'

Felicity stepped back, numb, all the fight having left her now.

Oliver turned away for a second, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean..." the anger was absent from his voice

Her eyes blurred and she bent down to pick up the bags. "Don't worry about it. It's the truth, so...it's fine."

Hands entered her field of vision and took the bags from her to place them back into the trunk as she blinked rapidly to clear her eyes. Oliver rubbed one hand from her shoulder to elbow in a comforting gesture. "I'm sorry." he said sincerely and she knew he meant it.

He cleared his throat before he spoke again. "I think I saw a sign for a visitor's center while you were sleeping. We can head there and see if they can help us. Or maybe someone will drive by."

"Sure, sounds good." she answered, still rocked by what he had said.

"So go ahead and get changed so we can start walking." he said with a gesture to her current attire.

Felicity glanced down at what she was wearing. She'd chosen capri length yoga pants, two layered tank tops and a light weight hoodie paired with her Chucks from college. She'd been going for comfort over style.

"I don't have anything else." she stated, jostled out of her previous state by his request.

"You don't have anything else to wear?" he asked incredulously

"We're supposed to infiltrate a high society party tonight, I brought a cocktail dress and my second favorite pair of heels, not hiking gear!" she bit back

"I thought women were supposed to overpack." he retorted, his tone darkening at yet another problem.

Felicity glared at him before responding, "Sorry to disappoint you, Mr. Queen, but I'm not most women."

Oliver's angry glower held hers until he blinked and his expression softened. "I'm sorry, you're right. We didn't expect this to happen."

She gave him a little nod in appreciation of his effort, "And maybe in the future we should have an emergency bag left in the car just in case." she conceded, willing to share the blame.

Oliver went back to the trunk and dug in his bag until he fished out one of the dark grey hoodies he used for training. "Here," he said handing it to her. "It's all I have, but it'll help once the temperature starts to drop."

She took it automatically, "What about you?" she gave him an appraising look. He wore his usual dark jeans and tight fitted t-shirt.

"I'll be fine." he assured her,

"Oliver, you'll freeze. I at least have..." she started to hand the hoodie back but his hands closed over hers and he stopped her.

"Felicity, I'll be fine. I've been through worse." his eyes were dark, and for just a second she could see the desolation and despair he'd suffered from.

Her mouth went dry and all she could whisper was "Ok," before she tied the hoodie around her waist.

Oliver slid the bag with his bow and quiver out of the car and strapped it to his back.

"Anything else you want to bring you need to put in here."

Felicity nodded and went through her bags. She selected her tablet and a couple of other small devices. Nothing else would be helpful right then.

Oliver turned his back and allowed her to open the zipper and slide the tablet in.

"Ok, all set." she said

"Do we have any supplies?" a mask was falling across his face that she'd never seen before and it left her cold.

"Just the two bottled waters you got at that gas station." she hurried to the car and reached awkwardly in the backseat to pick them up from where they'd been thrown. One was almost empty. She took the time to pour the remainder into the other bottle.

"Any food?" he called out

"No," she said, shaking her head as she joined him. "This is all we've got." she held up the water bottle so he could see how much was in it.

That look was there again. Like he was being dropped back on the island with no hope of survival.

"You can't expect it to take that long before we find some help, do you?" she asked in surprise.

"I don't know what to expect, that's the problem."

She didn't respond. Instead she took her garment bag out of the car and pondered the best way of carrying it. She almost grabbed Oliver's as well but knew it would get too heavy over time. Just as she reached up to slam the trunk lid he was next to her.

"You can't hike across the mountains with an evening gown draped over your arm." he said simply and took the bag from her

"Well what am I supposed to do when we get there then, go like this?" she said sarcastically and waved a hand down the front of herself.

Oliver leaned in close and whispered, "I'll buy you a new dress." his breath slipped across her ear, and the shiver that went down her spine took her breath away.

She stood in stunned silence the entire time he placed the dress back in the car and returned to her side.

"Ready to go?" He asked as if he hadn't done what he just did. But the hard edge was back, and she saw his eyes cutting over the forest around them like he was awaiting an attack.

Felicity swallowed hard and nodded once, not trusting her voice.

They walked without talking, single file on the side of the road, Oliver's pace was steady, and quicker than she would have liked, but she was managing to keep up.

They had Oliver's phone to check things like the time and the general direction, but she didn't want to drain the battery if they didn't need to. There was no way they were touching the tablet; it was the only piece of equipment she had left if they made it to their destination on time.

It wasn't even noon yet, but the sky was grey and cloudy, and while the temperature was comfortable she knew any bit of rain would chill them instantly.

After an hour a car hadn't passed them, nor had they seen another sign. She'd guessed they'd walked around four miles, although she was sure Oliver could have gone further without her. She almost suggested he do just that, but she knew he'd never go for it.

A trailhead was twenty yards before them. A wooden sign, half concealed by the trees said 'Blue Mountain Trail 2.5 miles' and pointed into the forest.

Oliver stilled before it and she took the opportunity to pull the water bottle from the bag, taking only a small drink before she handed it to him.

While Oliver was occupied with studying the trail she cautiously lifted the hem of her shirt to look at her side. The longer they walked the more painful it had become. When she saw her abdomen she couldn't hold back the gasp, "Damn" she hissed at the dark, mottled bruising that stretched low right below her waistline.

"What is it?" Oliver asked, turning immediately. Felicity tugged her shirt down in haste but wasn't quick enough.

"What's wrong?" his hands were reaching forward and she couldn't have stopped him if she tried.

Felicity stood helpless as Oliver pulled her shirt up and saw where the seat belt had cut into her. Her breath came out between her teeth as he lightly ran a hand over the bruises. His touch felt like electricity every where he made contact.

"Where else?" he demanded, and before she could reply he was lowering her zipper and moving aside the shoulder of her tank top so he could inspect the skin beneath. When his fingers trailed the path the belt had made from her shoulder downwards her hand flashed up and caught his, holding it still above her right breast before it could go any further.

Her breaths were sharp and shallow as her eyes met his. She watched as his pupils darkened as the realization of what he had just done registered with him.

This was the first time she'd ever considered he could possibly feel something for her.

His hand unfurled beneath hers and reached up slowly to cup her bare shoulder. She could feel his fingers follow the edge of her collarbone, his thumb continuing inwards until it reached the soft hollow of her neck. His eyes never left hers, and there was no way he could miss the frantic beating of her pulse.

"Oliver," she whispered throatily, her hand falling limply to her side. His thumb stroked once, twice, and stilled at the base of her throat.

She saw his internal struggle. His eyes shut tight, and when he opened them his hand fell to her waist and then back to his side.

"You could have internal damage." his voice only barely betrayed the moment that had just passed between them.

Felicity wasn't sure if she was going to be able to speak. "I think if I was bleeding out inside I'd know." Sarcasm was easy, it allowed her to move them back to a safe place instead of the uneasy territory they had just been in.

Oliver's eyes narrowed at her comment. "You need to tell me if anything feels wrong."

"I will." she promised, looking away now, unable to maintain eye contact with him any longer.

"So...should we take the trail?" she asked suddenly, and much louder than necessary.

Oliver paused before he replied, "There's no way to know. This road seems virtually unused and I don't see signs of anyone else on the trail."

Felicity peered into the cleared path and couldn't see anything that would tell you if someone was on the trail or not.

"We should stay on the road." he decided, and before she could say a word he had picked up his original pace.

Two hours later her stomach was growling, thunder was rumbling overhead, and they still hadn't seen a car or another sign. She was also getting a blister on the heel of her left foot.

"Oliver," she called "Can we please just stop and take a break. We're not all chiseled gods of stamina like you."

He seemed a bit put out by her request, but didn't say anything when she sat on a nearby log and enjoyed the act of not moving.

A strong breeze blew through along with a closer rumble of thunder.

"What do we do if it rains?" she asked warily

"We deal with it." he answered, his eyes darting around them. His hand clenched and unclenched repeatedly.

"Oliver, what is it?" she was looking around now too, worried he had seen something.

Suddenly his hand snapped out and grabbed her wrist, it didn't hurt, but she knew she wouldn't be able to get out of it. "We need cover."

Thankfully there was another trailhead a few yards away, or she was certain he would have drug her straight through the forest regardless of if there was a path or not.

His pace was punishing. It took all her concentration to make sure she didn't fall or trip. However, after several minutes she knew she wouldn't be able to keep up indefinitely.

"Oliver stop!" she cried, losing her balance once again. She would have ended up in the dirt if he hadn't caught her in time. He was looking at her, but he wasn't seeing her.

"You're scaring me." she said honestly, trying to control her ragged breath.

Slowly, with a shaking hand, she reached towards him. He jumped when she touched his face, but he didn't pull away. Feeling bolder she took a half a step closer. Her hand slid along his jawline. She stroked her thumb over his cheekbone until she saw recognition in his eyes.

"We're not on the island, Oliver." she said softly, worried as to how he would take it.

He blinked several times, half with her, but half not.

"We're not on the island. You're not in danger." one more step closer and she was almost flush with him. Her other hand came up and rested lightly on his chest, she could feel rough scar tissue through his shirt.

"No one is going to hurt you here. It's just me and you." Felicity bit her lip, not knowing if what she was doing was right or not. She wished Digg was there, he'd be better at the battlefield psychology than she was.

"There's no one chasing you. No one hurting you. You're safe." his eyes cut over her at this and somehow, without him speaking she knew where he found fault with her words. "_We're_ safe." she amended and saw and felt him relax slightly. "We're safe." she repeated, at a loss now for what else she could say to get through to him.

A growl of thunder shook the ground beneath her, the first fat rain drops splashing down on them as Oliver came out of whatever memory he'd been locked in.

With a great gasp of air he rocked back, chest heaving. He looked around like he wasn't sure how they got where they were, and then his gaze landed on her.

She'd never seen him look so broken before. His long arms reached out and pulled her towards him. She hit his chest with a surprised oof and froze as his arms banded about her. She was still for a moment before she tried to wrap hers around his waist but hit the pack on his back instead. Felicity settled on laying them against his side, clutching the t-shirt that was getting more and more wet the harder it rained.

"I'm sorry," he muttered into her hair. She shook her head in response to let him know he had nothing to apologize for.

She pulled back to look up at him, never expecting him to be so close. Rivulets of water ran down his face. He looked sad, and alone, and she never wanted him to look like that again. Without thought to the consequences or to what she was actually doing she raised on her toes, her eyes flicking constantly from his lips to his eyes.

Oliver did nothing to stop her. Just as their mouths were a hairsbreadth away from each other a huge round of thunder sounded from just above them. She jumped with a squeal of surprise, almost losing contact with him. When she looked back the moment was lost.

Her cheeks redder than they had ever been Felicity scraped wet hair out of her face and spared a glance at him under her lashes. Her glasses were spotted with water now, making it hard to see. With a sigh she took them off and slid them into the zippered pocket of her hoodie.

"Are you going to be able to see?" Oliver asked. The first thing he'd said since his flashback freakout since 'I'm sorry'.

"I'll be fine. What's depth perception anyways." she knew her voice was shaky but she couldn't stop it. She'd almost kissed him. He'd almost let her. What the hell had just happened?

She shivered from the wet and the cold, and also from the memory of what she had almost done. Oliver's arms were reaching for her again and she froze until she realized he was undoing the hoodie she'd tied about her waist.

He didn't look at her as he executed his task. Methodically, he shook out the jacket, wrapped it around her shoulders and waited for her to slip her arms in before zipping it up for her. His hands rested at the neck of the jacket for what seemed like an eternity before, ever so slowly he raised the hood, much like she had done for him countless times before he'd gone out on a mission.

A smile broke her face at the action and she was glad to see it was returned. "I'll leave the arrowing up to you, if that's alright."

"Don't sell yourself short, could be a new career move." he replied easily. She was glad to see that whatever had happened, or could happen didn't seem to be affecting them. Maybe he was just deciding to ignore it, but she could analyze that to death later.

"I'll stick to my day job...and my night job." she busied herself with rolling up the too long sleeves while Oliver took a look around them. When she could actually use her hands again she looked up.

"I'm sorry. I don't know where we are. There's a stream that way," he said pointing behind her, "And we came from that direction," indicating the woods that lay beyond him, "But at some point I took us off the trail."

"Well, this storm isn't letting up, so I say you just pick whichever way you think is going to get us back to civilization the quickest." she said honestly, she didn't want him feeling guilty about what had happened.

His look was grateful, and without a word he headed back the way they had come.

Five minutes later her hand was firmly attached to his. They had learned the hard way that the rubber soles of her shoes were no match for a downpour and muddy terrain. She was filthy, sore, and most definitely suffering from minor whiplash if the ache in her neck was an indication. She was also exhausted and starving, but there was nothing to be done about any of it. Any time she was tempted to complain she just reminded herself that Oliver had been stuck on an island for five years, and she promptly shut herself up.

Their journey out of the woods was much slower than the one they had taken in, especially with her slipping every few steps. Tears of frustration came out as she fell for the third time in as many minutes. Oliver's hands on her waist steadied her as she wiped the backs of her hands across her cheeks.

"Sorry, this is just really starting to piss me off." she said by way of explanation

"I don't think it's much further." he promised, and she hoped he was right.

Thankfully he was correct. She'd never thought she'd be so happy to see asphalt as she was when they made their way out of the trees.

The open space was colder, as the wind howled through the tunnel created by the trees. She pulled the hoodie closer to her body as she shivered. Oliver stood next to her, his t-shirt completely plastered to his chest; it was impossible not to stare.

She got caught looking and a hot flush stained her face. "What do we do now?"

Before he could answer she heard the unmistakeable sound of a car approaching. Without thought she darted into the road and began jumping up and down, waving her arms and yelling.

A truck barreled around the corner and Oliver had only a split second to pull her back to the shoulder as the truck screeched to a halt.

Felicity was collapsed against Oliver's chest in horror at what she had just stupidly done. She shook uncontrollably, his hands on the back of her head and cross her back the only thing she was aware of.

A sharp slam of a car door made jump.

"What the hell are you playing at lady? Are you trying to get yourself killed!" a voice came from behind her.

Felicity shut her eyes tight and took a deep breath before she turned in Oliver's arms. "Sorry, it wasn't one of my better thought out ideas."

The voice ended up belonging to a park ranger. His brown truck was still in the middle of the road. Rivers of rain washed over the brim of his hat as he approached them.

"That your roadkill down the way?" he asked, sharp eyes looking Oliver up and down, not missing the long bag attached to his back.

Oliver's arms slid from around her, although one still rested across her back. "Yes, Ranger. The deer came out of nowhere, I wasn't able to avoid hitting it."

"They're a damn nuisance. The place is over run with them, and hunting season is months away." this sounded like a long held bone of contention with the man. "Glad to see you made it out alright even if your fancy car didn't."

"Would it be possible to borrow a phone to make a call?" Oliver asked easily, his tone the one he used with people at parties.

"I've got a satellite phone in my truck." he offered and began to make his way back.

"Could she sit in the cab and get warm while I'm making the call?" Felicity jumped a bit in surprise at Oliver's thoughtfulness.

"Of course. I'll crank the heat up for you." The ranger agreed.

Teeth chattering, she wasn't going to turn down the offer. Oliver helped her into the worn front seat and shut the door firmly behind her. She was so grateful to not being rained on any longer and to have dry, warm air blowing on her she lost track of how long Oliver was on the phone.

Her eyes slid shut without her consent as she turned sideways and curled into the fake leather seat underneath her. She had to adjust her position a few times until her bruises didn't hurt.

She must have dozed off. When she opened her eyes next the truck was moving and her head was laying against Oliver's shoulder. One of his hands rested on her knee. She was angry with herself that she'd missed how that had come to be.

"Wake up Sleeping Beauty, we're back to our car." Oliver said lightly as he felt her stir.

"Sorry, did I fall asleep?" she said still in a daze. Her clothes were heavy and wet, and frizzy half dried strands of hair fell into her face. She didn't want to know what she looked like.

The ranger pulled off in front of Oliver's car. Somehow the damage looked worse than it had before. She realized how lucky they were to walk away.

Oliver was opening the door and tugging her out behind him. "Come on, we can wait in the back seat until our ride gets here."

"Digg's coming?" she asked, confused as she let him tow her quickly to the car.

"Something like that." he said cryptically before turning back to the ranger.

Through the window she saw him shake hands with the man and thank him. The interior of the car wasn't warm, but it was dry. When Oliver opened the other door and climbed in she shivered with the gust of wind that blew in with him.

"So, who's coming to get us." she rubbed her hands together briskly to warm them.

"About that..." he trailed off and looked sheepish, a pit began to form in her stomach.

"Oliver..." however, before she could finish a faint thumping sound began and got gradually louder and louder until she could do nothing but watch in total shock as a black helicopter landed on the deserted road in front of them.

The large white, 'QC' on the tail let her know exactly who was responsible for this. Her heart beat out of control as she realized what he expected her to do.

"No!" she exclaimed through a rapidly closing throat. "No!" her head shook back and forth so fast she knew she was doing more damage to her neck but she couldn't stop.

"Felicity..."

"No, Oliver. I can't. Ok, I just can't. I'm sorry. I know you don't get it because absolutely nothing in this world scares you, but I can't." tears ran unchecked, but she couldn't tear her eyes away from the flying cage of death thirty yards ahead.

"Hey," he said forcefully and directed her face to his. "You can. You can do this. You're remarkable Felicity Smoak, remember." his smile was soothing, but not enough to tramp down the panic that was currently drowning her.

"And besides, you're wrong. There are things that scare me." his tone was so serious, and so heartfelt she forgot about her own fears for just a moment. "Losing the people who mean the most to me is terrifying."

Their eyes locked. In an instant she was transported back to when she had to listen over the comms as Oliver watched his best friend die. She could hear his desperate pleas for Tommy to open his eyes echo over and over again.

Time stilled, and she found herself nodding her consent. If Oliver could survive the island, survive Tommy, survive the betrayal of his mother, then maybe she could manage to get on that helicopter without having a full blown panic attack.

Oliver didn't say a word. He gave her a broad, supportive smile, and pressed a hard kiss to her forehead. Three minutes later she was sitting rigid in the helicopter while Oliver fastened her restraints and made sure the headphones covered her ears correctly.

She watched in mute fascination as everything was taken from their car and stored on the helicopter. The pilot's voice was in her ear asking Oliver if they were ready for takeoff. His hand clamped over hers before he gave the pilot a thumbs up.

Her eyes slammed shut as soon as she felt it begin to lift. Her hand fumbled with Oliver's until they were palm to palm, their fingers intertwined. She tried not to dig her nails into him but it couldn't be helped.

The entire flight was spent in just this fashion. Not once did she open her eyes, and not once did Oliver try and convince her to.

Maybe she entered some sort of zen spot, or trance, or maybe her brain just shut down for awhile so that she could survive the trip. The next thing she knew the constant vibration was gone and Oliver was peeling her hand off of his so he could remove the headphones.

"Is it over?" she asked desperately,

Oliver gave a low chuckle, "Yes, it's over, and you survived."

"Oh thank god!" she exclaimed, he undid the safety restraints just as she launched herself at him. Her arms wrapped around his neck as she buried her face in his throat in relief.

"I hate you and I love you for making me do that." she blurted out accidentally. Felicity gulped audibly as she reheard what she'd just said. "I didn't mean...I just...it's a figure of speech, you know. I'm not professing some sort of undying affection or anything, I was just...you should just shut me up right now before-"

Felicity's words were cut off by Oliver's mouth pressing over hers. It was quick, and hard, and over all too soon. She stared at him in total shock when he sat back, smug grin on his face.

"I've been wondering for awhile if that would be an effective way to get you to stop babbling."

Her mouth opened and shut repeatedly, but no sound came out. She allowed him to pull her from her seat, and help her out of the helicopter, still silent because she could not believe what he had just done.

They were halfway across the rooftop before she realized they were back in Starling City, on the top of Queen Consolidated.

She halted in place when she saw Digg standing by the door, their luggage waiting at his feet.

"What? How? I don't..." nothing was making sense

"Our target changed his plans. Digg had been calling all morning trying to get a hold of us to let us know he'd no longer be at the party tonight. The mission got canceled." Oliver explained easily

She took a moment to let the information sink in.

"It got canceled? And you knew about this when you used the ranger's satellite phone to call Digg and arrange a way back for us?" Slowly she was beginning to understand what had happened.

Oliver nodded, his face betraying nothing.

A heat rose in her chest, "You knew we weren't continuing on the mission and you brought in a helicopter to take us out! You could have sent a car! Hell, you could have come back in the chopper and I would have waited all day for a car! How could you, Oliver Queen! How could you make me get in that death trap!" she swung angry fists at his chest, only becoming more enraged as he pretended to flinch away as if she could actually harm him.

When one hit came too close to his face he grabbed her wrists lightly and tugged her close. "I'm sorry you think I tricked you. But I knew you could get in the chopper." he had more faith in her than she did, and that more than anything calmed her down. "And let me be the first to point out that today you have driven in a car and flown in a helicopter and only one of those ended up crashing. And it wasn't the helicopter."

Her momentary feeling of calm left her as she struggled to get her hands free. "I can't believe you, Oliver! That was dirty!" she intended to rail against him some more, but once again he stopped her with a kiss.

"No. It wasn't dirty. But it could be." The innuendo took her breath away. His lips slanted over hers once again, more of a promise of things to come than anything else and then he was walking away.

She was shocked in place, until suddenly she was jolted out of her reverie. "Oliver!" she called across the great expanse of concrete.

Wind whipped her hair into her face as she saw him turn. "Why do you keep kissing me?" she asked, not caring if the pilot or even Digg could hear her.

Oliver paused. She could see the smile cross his face before he answered. "Because I like it."

Without another word he turned back and gathered his weapons bag before disappearing through the doorway.

Felicity followed slowly, Digg's face was professionally blank as she approached. "Not one word, John Diggle, not one word." she warned.

"I have no idea what you're talking about, Ms. Smoak." he said, but his tone said something entirely different.

"Shut up," she ordered, but there was no heat in her voice. With a resigned sigh she picked up her two tech bags and started down the stairs.

She heard Digg behind her getting the rest.

Felicity didn't know what was going to happen, but she knew it was going to be interesting.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Thanks again for taking the time to read and review! Hope you enjoy this latest trope. As always if you have suggestions for more, feel free to share. I've got quite the list now but I'm always looking to add to it. **

**Trope #4- Having to share a bed**

Felicity slid the plastic key card into the slot and waited for the green light to go off before pushing the door open. She turned to see the surreal vision of Oliver Queen carrying her luggage into a hotel room.

He looked around slowly, peering into the dark bathroom. "Is this it?"

Because they were trying to stay under the radar Felicity had to book the room under her name using her credit card. Even with Oliver paying her back there was no way she could afford the penthouse suite with it's multiple bedrooms, and sunken living room.

So they were in what she could afford. Which meant they were in a normal hotel room.

What their room did give them was an unobstructed view to the apartment building across the street, which is why she had specifically asked for the cheap rate, and a room facing the parking lot.

"Sorry, mister billionaire, you're slumming it with the rest of us." she said easily and slipped past him into the bathroom.

"Where should I put your bags?" she heard him ask through the door.

"Either of the beds will be fine." she replied

"Bed," he responded

"What?" she asked in confusion as she exited the bathroom. As she turned the corner she realized what the problem was.

"No. I reserved a room with two beds. Two. Not one." Felicity felt her cheeks flush red in horror, hoping Oliver didn't think she'd done this on purpose.

He didn't seem to be as put out as she was. He laid their bags on the single bed and motioned towards the phone. "Just call the front desk. I'm sure they can move us."

He grabbed the bag containing his bow and quiver and brushed past her. "Text me the new room number. I'm going to go scout the rooftop and get the lay of the place." and in a blink he was gone.

She stood frozen, before she literally shook herself out of her own thoughts and called the front desk.

She tried. He couldn't say she didn't try.

They apologized profusely but there was a convention in the hotel and there were no other rooms available on their side of the building. Ironically they were willing to move her to a two room suite as an apology for their mistake, but it faced the pool, and was five floors too high.

With a sigh and a request that they let her know immediately if they had a cancellation in a two bed room on the correct side of the building she hung up.

Resigned she sent Oliver a text with the same room number and got to work setting up the surveillance equipment.

By the time Oliver unlocked the door it was getting dark and she was on her knees trying to wire a particularly difficult long range camera to her laptop so they could have a continuous feed of what was going on.

"Felicity..." Oliver drew out, not seeing her at first.

"Here," she announced, sticking one hand over the edge of the bed before she continued what she was doing.

"Why are we still in this room?" she felt the bed shudder as he threw the bag on it and sat down heavily.

"There's a convention or something and the only other available room was on the other side of the hotel, which would defeat the purpose of us being here in the first place so I told them to put us on a list in case a room opens up on this side, but I'm not going to hold my breath, and that's just how it's going to have to be." she said this all in one go, and not once did she pause or look over at him while she was working.

"I think I only caught about half of that, but the gist is that this is our room." there was a hint of amusement in his voice, but also something else.

Finally getting the connection to go the way she wanted let out a victorious whoop and crawled out from underneath the table.

She laid her elbows on the top of the mattress and looked up at him. "Yes, that is the gist."

She'd been going over this conversation in her mind the entire time he'd been gone.

"Look, we're both adults. This is a king size bed. There is absolutely no reason we can't share." she said it perfunctorily, and climbed to her feet, straightening her top as she did and actually crossed her arms in front of her while she waited for his response.

Oliver gave her an inscrutable look and laughed. "You practiced that, didn't you?"

Her cheeks flushed and she stalked out from behind the bed to put some distance between them. "I...how...I mean...How did you know?" she said, admitting her defeat

"You didn't ramble. And this right here is a quality Felicity Smoak ramble situation." His smile was genuine

Her mouth opened and shut before she could stutter out a reply, "Oh, and you just think you're an expert on my rambles then, are you?"

"I think it's fair enough to say that I am." her cheeks burned even more and she ducked her head away from him. "I find it endearing."

Her head flew up and her eyes met his. Had she just heard him right?

"Well, you don't need to worry, I mean, we _are_ adults. And we can even use a pillow barrier if you want. I don't mean to imply that we _need_ one. I don't intend on jumping you in the middle of the night or anything...oh my god did I really say that out loud?" Why couldn't she learn? Why did she continue to do the same thing over and over again?

Oliver approached her slowly and leaned down slightly so he could look her in the eye, "Felicity, it'll be fine. I don't think I'm in danger. Like you said, we're adults. We can share a bed."

Felicity took a deep breath and gave him a nod, her wish to have a hole open up below her and swallow her having only decreased slightly.

The rest of the evening passed in relative ease. The cameras and computers were set up to alert if there was any movement in the apartment. The man they were after was due in that night or maybe the next, the intel hadn't been clear on that. Felicity had set the programs up so they weren't tethered to the tech.

Oliver ordered room service and paid cash, which she said did not constitute being on the down low, but he ignored her. They ate quietly while Felicity went over the file she'd amassed on their target.

She kept thinking things were a bit strained between them, but then he'd do or say something that was perfectly normal and she just thought she was imagining things. It was no different than being in the lair all night, she told herself.

Near eleven he decided to do a quick patrol. She knew it was mostly because he was getting antsy sitting in one spot for so long, but she didn't let on.

As the door shut behind him she let out a breath she didn't realize she'd been holding. Maybe he hadn't been on edge all night, but she had.

How was she supposed to sleep in the same bed as Oliver and pretend like she hadn't had this exact same fantasy almost from the day she met him.

She let out an exasperated sigh and threw herself backwards onto the bed.

She had a huge crush on him. Actually it was more than that, she liked him. A lot. Scratch that, she loved the man. Full on, in love, hadn't looked at another guy in months, in love with the man.

And there wasn't a damn thing she could do about it.

After Tommy, whatever had been between Laurel and Oliver had fallen apart. Hell, Oliver had fallen apart. It had taken months for Felicity to get through to him again, before he started sounding like the man he had been before the Glades. But whatever she thought might have been there between her and him, or maybe just the idea that it could be possible, had been effectively quashed. Oliver had been nothing but business since he'd been back.

He sounded like the old Oliver, and acted like the old Oliver, except when it came to her.

She hadn't noticed it at first, but he didn't touch her any more. Not that he had ever touched her that much, but there would be an occasional hand on her shoulder, or a brush over her arm after he'd come back from a particularly difficult mission. But since he'd put the Hood back on after the Glades; nothing.

So she took his cue and did the same. Unless she was patching him up she didn't touch him, and then she was sure to use gloves. She'd never realized how often she wanted to do it, until she couldn't.

With a growl of frustration she forced herself off the bed and opened her suitcase. When she'd packed she knew her and Oliver would be sharing a _room_ and that thought had been bad enough. Now though...

She'd wrestled long and hard over what to wear to sleep in. It couldn't be too revealing, and yet, she didn't want it to be too frumpy either. Typically she wore an old t-shirt and yoga pants but that simply wouldn't do.

In the end she'd decided on a tank style nightgown. The straps over the shoulders were almost two inches wide and it came to her knees, which made it longer than several cocktail dresses he'd seen her in.

As she made her way into the bathroom to brush her teeth and change she wondered if it had been a wise decision. Maybe the ratty t-shirt would have been a better choice.

The bed loomed before her. She wondered distractedly if he had a side of the bed. Then she wondered if their preferred sides were compatible.

She checked her equipment one more time and then eyed the bed warily. She could stay up and wait for him to get back before she chose a side, or she could just get in and hope to fall asleep. Or to at least pretend that she had.

It took no time at all to come to the conclusion that the latter of the two options was the better one.

For a mid-level hotel chain the bed was surprisingly soft, and there were more than enough pillows to make that barrier if she really wanted to. She selected her optimal pillow amount and put the extra one from her side on the floor.

With the lights out and her glasses off, all she could make out was the faint glow from her computer, and various small lights on the camera. She wondered if she should get up and turn a light on for Oliver, but remembered he had the eyesight of a cat and would be just fine.

She had expected sleep to be elusive, as wired as her brain had been, but apparently internally freaking out for five hours about having to share a bed with Oliver Queen was quite draining and she was asleep in minutes.

A shrill repetitive beep drew her from sleep. She blinked open blurry eyes and saw the clock said 2:43 in the morning. A shot of panic went through her that Oliver hadn't come back, until she felt a heavy weight across her stomach.

Fully expecting she was still asleep and dreaming Felicity rolled over slightly to see Oliver right behind her with one long arm draped over her middle.

The beeping continued, and it was only because she was worried it would wake him that she slid out from beneath his arm and padded silently to her computer. Two short key strokes stopped the alarm and she spent a few minutes reviewing the last bit of film. There was no movement in the apartment, but there was a bird that had to decide to perch on the ledge that was barely visible in her sight line. With a heavy sigh she made the necessary adjustments and started the recording again. That task completed she now had to deal with the reality that lay only feet from her.

Turning slowly she observed him for a long time. He hadn't seemed to have moved which she found odd since she had just assumed he would have been a light sleeper. He lay mostly on his stomach with his head turned toward her side of the bed, his arm still outstretched.

With an audible gulp she realized he'd come to bed without a shirt one. Was the man trying to kill her?

Her eyes drifted from her empty space in the bed to the uncomfortable looking chair on the other side of the room. Should she try and sleep there instead?

No. That would look even worse in the morning if he woke up to find her in the chair. Maybe when she got back into bed he'd roll to his other side and wouldn't even know this had happened.

Her mind made up, and with her heart beating so fast she was amazed it hadn't exploded, she pulled the covers back slowly and slid into bed.

At first she lay so far over Oliver's fingers barely made contact with her. She was stiff as a board, and making a pathetic attempt at controlling her breathing when he shifted suddenly.

Her eyes wide, she didn't dare move. He sighed heavily, and mumbled something before reaching out.

She stifled her squeak of surprise as his arm wrapped around her waist again, but this time he was pulling her towards him. He easily slid her his direction like she weighed no more than one of the pillows. His hand clutched the down cover above them as he made another noise, this one sounding more like a sigh of contentment before he was still once more.

Millions of thoughts raced through her mind. The loudest one was shouting 'Enjoy it! You may not get this chance again!' And although that simultaneously made her want to crawl in a hole and die of shame, there was also some truth to it. So she justified it. She pushed aside her fear, and her nerves, and the possibility that this could go horribly wrong in the morning and she decided she was going to just let this happen.

Amazingly as soon as she accepted this path her breathing returned to normal, and her pulse was back to where it was supposed to be. She carefully turned on her side, still facing away from him and tried to just enjoy the moment, instead of letting the butterflies in her stomach get out of control. She fell back asleep to thoughts of doing this in the Queen mansion and how it would be to be able to do this every night.

There were no more intrusive alarms the rest of the night. Something tickling her right leg brought her slowly into that space between asleep and awake. Turning her head into the pillow she cracked open one eye to see a close up view of one of Oliver's tattoos.

Except it hadn't been the pillow she'd turned into, it had been Oliver's arm. She lay as still as possible, now suddenly, and painfully wide awake. His breath was still even, for which she was immensely grateful.

Either she'd turned into him during the night or he'd pulled her in closer, it was impossible to tell, but both his arms were wrapped securely around her, one hand splayed across her ribs, the other engulfing her hip. It was that hand that was currently causing her so many problems.

His nearness was disorienting. She'd only ever been this close to him when he'd been practically on deaths door, and even then she'd had thoughts that had later made her blush. Now, in bed, with the man she couldn't stop thinking about...she was in trouble.

His fingers traced unknown patterns on her skin that made her entire body shiver, as well as a flush of heat that went straight to her core.

He was asleep, she told herself. He wasn't aware of what he was doing. He was probably dreaming of some supermodel, or actress he'd been with before. Or maybe Laurel. Probably Laurel. She tried to tell herself there was no way he knew what he was doing in hopes it would lessen the blow when he woke up and realized who he was with.

She took a slow deep breath and began to move; she couldn't keep laying there and have any sort of hold over her sanity.

As soon as she shifted, Oliver did as well. He rolled more to his back and took her with him. The weight of him was enough to keep her trapped. She now had one hand braced on his chest as his arms held her more securely.

The hand he'd had on her hip had pulled her leg to now lay over his thigh. Her heart rate increased, as a shot of pure desire went through her.

She couldn't do this. She had to get out.

She decided to just be quick about it. Get out of the bed as fast as possible, and hope she could make it to the safety of the bathroom before he was awake enough to know what had happened.

It was a solid plan.

As she gave herself a mental pep talk Oliver's hand became more adventurous as it trailed up and down the length of her bare thigh. She wasn't even going to acknowledge the fact that her nightgown was rucked up about her waist now.

Felicity steeled herself for her next move, but just as she was about to bolt Oliver sighed deeply and buried his face in her hair. "..'Licity..." he mumbled, and she froze.

Heart pounding she tilted her head back slowly so she could see his face. He looked calm, and at peace, and she could count on one hand the number of times she'd seen that since she'd met him. Without realizing she was doing it, she lifted her hand and let it coast along his jawline.

Her eyes followed her fingers as they scraped across a day's worth of stubble. They traced his ear, over his temple, and traversed the shallow lines near his eye. As they trailed over his cheekbone she suddenly went still.

Without her being aware he'd woken up, and now her gaze was locked with his. Blue eyes that were clear, and aware, and fully cognizant of what was happening were staring back at her, and there was no surprise or shock, or anger.

All the nervousness, and uncertainty she'd felt before disappeared, and after the longest of pauses, where neither of them said a word she began to move her hand again, ever so tentatively.

The hand on her leg had resumed as well, he trailed one long, slow path from her knee to her hip where he took his time running along the edge of her underwear.

Her breath stalled in her throat but she didn't stop touching him. When she ran her hand over the back of his head and scratched her nails lightly he let out an involuntary groan that made her stomach do a flip.

His rapidly darkening eyes also let her know that he was just as affected by this as she was, but he still hadn't said a word.

She allowed her hand to fall down his throat, loving the feel of the corded muscles beneath his skin.

"Why don't you touch me any more?" she said breathlessly, unable to remain silent any longer.

His hand left her hip, followed the curve of her waist, and up over her shoulder. As his thumb worked it's way under the shoulder of her nightgown, she swallowed heavily and tried to control her pulse which was rapidly getting out of control.

He studied her intently before letting his hand come up to cup her cheek, "Because I knew if I started, I'd never be able to stop."

She'd stopped breathing, that was for sure. She also might still be sleeping, because this could not be her reality.

"Oliver..." she began but was halted when he lightly pressed one finger over her lips.

"You make me better, Felicity. But I'm not sure I make you better." There was nothing but truth behind his words. He fully believed what he said.

"So why are you touching me now?" she had to know. She needed him to tell her what had caused this sudden change.

The hand on her cheek slid back so his fingers caressed the nape of her neck and his thumb ghosted over the shell of her ear. He drew her even closer towards him before he answered.

"Because I'm a selfish man." he whispered, his mouth a hairsbreadth from his, and then it wasn't.

His lips on hers drowned out any thoughts that may be going through her head. The kiss was wet and hot and slightly desperate. There had months of sexual tension on her end, but she had been completely unaware that he had shared in it as well.

He overwhelmed her. Every sense was heightened, her hands and feet were numb, as blood coursed through her, sending her heart thrumming from his touch.

His fingers were buried in her hair, the hand on her ribs now sliding under her nightgown, leaving electricity in his wake everywhere he touched. She arched into him when his thumb brushed the side of her breast, her hands finally waking up and finding purchase on his shoulder.

Felicity was unable to keep tiny, mewling noises from escaping as he sucked her bottom lip between his teeth and bit down lightly. Her hand flew to the back of his head to hold him tighter, making sure he didn't stop.

Oliver rolled to his back and took her with him. She let out a breathless gasp as she sprawled across his chest and then took advantage of her new situation. Stretching up to reach his mouth again, she let her hands fall to his shoulders, and then begin to work their way south by touch.

She found every scar, every rough pucker of skin marred by violence, and let her fingertips glide over them almost reverently. Her slower pace was matched by Oliver as his kisses left her mouth to find her jawline, followed by her neck.

She gasped aloud when he found a particularly sensitive spot, and then groaned when he used teeth, unconsciously pressing down onto the long, lean thigh that ran between her legs.

Sparks shot to her center at the contact, and taking things slow was suddenly rejected by both of them.

His palms skimmed up her bare back between her shoulder blades, leaving gooseflesh wherever he touched.

In a move she didn't see coming he divested her of her nightgown and flipped her onto her back before she could blink. Her bare chest was now in contact with his. Her hips dropped open automatically to accommodate him.

His arms bracketed either side of her, reinforcing just how large of a man he was. She shivered as she looked up, his blue eyes almost darkened to black. When his hand palmed her breast she threw her head back. Oliver took that as an open invitation to lathe her throat with his tongue and his teeth, working his way down to her collar bone, where she was sure she'd have a mark the next day.

Then, as if she'd been doused with cold water, his previous words finally registered with her. When she'd asked him why he was touching her, he'd told her he was a selfish man.

Was this about her, and him, or was this just a means to an end for him.

Suddenly she was pushing away from him, trying to put as much distance as possible between them. "No! Oliver stop!" she said desperately, as she scrambled out from under him and to the other side of the bed as quickly as possible.

Felicity clutched the sheet to her heaving chest, trying not to think about how he'd just been touching her. She ran a hand over her hair and shut her eyes tight trying to gain some sort of composure.

"What are you doing?" a flash of hurt went across his face and she changed her words immediately, "What are _we_ doing?" because she had to face the fact that even if he was doing this for different reasons she still hadn't stopped him.

He opened his mouth to begin speaking but she wouldn't let him, "God, Oliver. You had to know. You had to know I've had feelings for you. You can't just...play with that. I'm a real person. I don't do fake, and I don't do superficial. This means something to me. And beyond that the work we do means something to me. I can't go backwards now. But if you're not all in...where does that leave us? Where does that leave the Hood?" tears made her vision wavy. "I know I don't fit into your real world, but I fit into the other one, at least I thought I did...I can't...I can't lose that. But if this is some game, or you're just taking advantage of the situation..."

She risked a glance at him. He was still frozen in place, half on his side after she'd barreled out from under him. The stony expression was unreadable, except for his eyes which flicked from anger to hurt, to something she couldn't pin.

He took a long inhale and very deliberately pushed himself backwards so he could lean against the headboard. When he spoke he didn't look at her.

"I got back last night a little after midnight and you were sound asleep. Blonde hair spread over the pillow, and...you took my breath away. It felt so right getting into this bed, with you already in it, and that didn't make any sense to me. And then...I fell asleep, Felicity." he paused, as if he was expecting a reaction from her, and when he didn't get it he turned to face her. The raw emotion made her gasp.

"I never sleep. I train as hard as I do because it's the only way for me to get any rest. I work my body to the point of exhaustion, and pass out. If I don't do that, I don't sleep, not in the ways that count. Since I've been back...it's just how it's been. And last night...I didn't think it would be any different. I thought I would just lay there, but...I slept. Really slept."

Her face flushed at everything she had just said, horror that she'd just crucified him without knowing his side.

"I woke up around five and found you in my arms. It was...peace. I thought that every bad thing I'd ever done couldn't be that bad if I had someone like you in my life. And before I could go down the rabbit hole of my own psyche I fell back asleep; holding you. You are my absolution, Felicity Smoak, but...I'm not sure any one person deserves that sort of responsibility." She could see it in his eyes, he meant every word, and he expected her rejection.

Without a sound he handed her the nightgown he'd taken off of her and turned his head deliberately to the side so she could get dressed. With flushed cheeks she slid it over her head, thoughts whirling over what he had just told her.

"I can't say I'm sorry about what happened. Because I'm not." he said with a small shrug. "But I am sorry if I've made you doubt my intentions." he pushed the covers back and stood in one smooth move. "I think part of me has always known you could be this for me, but I was too scared to ask, because I didn't think I deserved it."

He began to turn away, but she couldn't let him.

"Stop!" she said sharply, as she crawled to the edge of the bed and knelt in front of him. "I need to know...you're all in?"

His hand came up haltingly before dropping over her hair, "I'm all in."

She gave him a brilliant smile, and looked up at him through her lashes, "You could of just said that, you know. Instead of rambling on, it can be a rather obnoxious trait, you know."

The corner of his mouth lifted in response, "Obnoxious?" he quoted, "I thought we had established that it was endearing."

"Did we?" she asked in mock confusion, as she continued to grin at him. Her hands lay lightly on his chest, as his palms slid down her arms to cup her elbows.

"I'm certain we did." he said softly and leaned down to brush her lips with his.

"Well good then, as long as we've got that straight." she deepened the kiss as her arms slid up to wrap around his neck.

"We should take this slow." she said breathlessly as their lips parted.

"That's probably not a bad idea." he agreed and very purposely stepped back. "I'm going to grab a shower, and then maybe we should go over the tape from last night just in case."

She nodded her agreement and watched as he entered the bathroom without looking back.

Felicity sat in half stunned silence unable to fully process everything that had just taken place.

As she heard the water running she made a decision. Before she could change her mind she rose to her feet and made her way to the bathroom. Steam rolled over the top of the shower, the curtain obscuring her view. Without a second thought she pulled her nightgown over her head and skimmed out of her underwear.

If Oliver was surprised when she drew back the curtain he didn't show it.

"What are you doing?" he asked

"I came to tell you we've spent enough time taking it slow." she said with as much control over her voice as possible, and stepped into the shower to join him.


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: Thanks for the continued support for this series. They're a ton of fun to write. Enjoy, and let me know what you think.**

Trope #5:kiss as a distraction to take on the bad guy

Later on, Felicity would remember that Digg had just made a joke at Oliver's expense that actually made him smile. She'd remember turning in the back seat of the car to face Oliver, grinning with him. She'd remember the sounds of shattering glass and crunching metal. She'd remember not being able to stop herself as she was thrown violently towards him before there was nothing but pain and darkness.

Later on, she'd regret how lax she'd become in wearing her seat belt when Digg was driving.

When she did come to she was aware of nothing but a furious pounding in her head and a sharp, shooting pain in her left wrist. She was cold, and when she blinked open her eyes she realized she was laying on a concrete floor.

For a long while all she could do was lay there and breathe. Time didn't exist outside of that one small feat.

It was the memory of the car crash and her concern for Oliver and Digg that finally made her move.

She pushed up with the hand that didn't hurt and immediately regretted it. Her head spun, and nausea swept through her stomach so quickly she almost got sick. She forced herself to take long deep breaths through her nose until it passed.

Wherever she was there was hardly any light. One lone bulb hung from a chain, but it was far away. The room felt cavernous and oppressive at the same time.

Her bad arm was clutched to her chest, the fingers of her opposite hand biting like ice into her skin. A shiver went through her and she tried to do up the tiny buttons of her thin cardigan but she could't manage.

Grateful she'd chosen to wear flats instead of heels that day, she slowly got to her knees, and after another wave of dizziness passed, to her feet.

She swallowed heavily as her stomach rolled once more, counting breaths and heartbeats until blood wasn't pounding in her ears and she could hear a steady dripping from somewhere in the darkness.

Very carefully she made her way towards the light. The room was empty save steel support beams, and a ceiling she couldn't make out. She assumed from the dampness she was underground, but she couldn't be sure.

There was nothing that helped point to where she was. No signs, no equipment, no trash even. She could still be in Starling City, or halfway around the world, there was no way of knowing for sure.

A thread of panic began to lace its way through her. Starting as a small stutter just beneath her breastbone and quickly blossoming until she felt like she couldn't breathe. She was alone. She was injured. She didn't know where Oliver and Digg were. She didn't know who had taken them.

The one thing she did know was this had been planned. Their car had been targeted. If it had been a true accident she would have woken up in the hospital with her arm in a sling and an I.V of the good stuff.

Trying to figure out the puzzle was actually calming her down. She leaned heavily on the pillar nearest the light and let her mind go.

Either someone had targeted the Hood, or someone had targeted Oliver Queen. It wasn't a secret that Digg was his driver, or what his car looked like. They'd been photographed and published too many times to have any sort of anonymity in that department.

At the moment they weren't working on anything Hood related. Oliver had only been back for a few months and was heavily involved in putting Queen Consolidated back on it's feet as well as doing what he could both publicly and privately to restore the Glades.

It made more sense to assume this was an attack on Oliver directly and his being a Queen although she couldn't actually rule anything out.

Pain flared through her head and she reached up a hesitant hand, wincing when she encountered sticky, matted hair and a large lump over her left temple. No wonder she'd been unconscious. The bleeding seemed to have stopped however, and she'd take what she could get right then.

A sharp click of metal on metal echoed around the space as the door was suddenly being pushed open.

Three men entered the room. All wore various styles of black leather jackets, dark pants, and heavy boots. Two of them had guns by their sides. But it was the one in the middle that scared her. His eyes were cold and dark and he didn't say a word until the door had been firmly shut behind him. Then he gave her a cruel smile.

The breath hitched in Felicity's throat and she took two halting steps backwards as the panic returned.

"Nice to see you awake, Blondie." the one with the eyes said. He reached into his jacket, and Felicity gasped, sure he was going to pull a gun and shoot her dead.

Instead, he took out her glasses. She hadn't even noticed she'd been missing them.

She froze in place as he approached her. When he opened the frames and reached out to place them on her face she scrunched her eyes tight and held her breath. He laughed once and patted her cheek, causing her eyes to fly open as she flinched away.

"Is that how you treat someone who just did you a favor?" he shook his head mockingly and turned back to stand with his muscle again.

"Now, Blondie, how about we have a little chat while we wait for your boyfriend to wake up." his tone suggested she wasn't really going to have a say in the matter.

Felicity's eyes cut from the leader to the other two. They didn't seem particularly intelligent, but they were heavily armed, and outweighed her by at least a hundred pounds.

"Wh...where is he?" she assumed they thought she was with Oliver, and for now she was going to let them. "Why did you do this?"

"Don't worry about that right now. We're taking good care of him." a shiver went through her at his words, and her fear for Oliver and Digg grew. "As far as why...that's also not your concern."

Hired gun, she thought immediately. Someone else had paid him and his crew to do the hit and the dirty work. Which meant someone with money. Which made her think this more had to do with the Queens and less with the Hood.

"You're the computer girl, right? Work at Queen Consolidated."

Felicity swallowed heavily and nodded. Clearly these guys had done some homework, and until she knew what they did and didn't know she wasn't going to voluntarily give anything away.

"Good. So you're the one we need."

"Need for what?" her voice shook as she spoke and she wished she could be tougher, but these guys scared her.

"You're going to log onto the Queen Consolidated system and download certain files for me. And if you don't, I'm going to let my boys here use you and Mr. Queen for target practice."

She knew her knees were shaking, probably her hands too but she couldn't feel them right then to know for sure.

"Which files?" she asked nervously

"Anything to do with the Queen's dealings with Merlyn Global and Luthor Corp." he sneered.

Felicity was surprised. Merlyn Global she could almost understand. The company was in the tank, and being sold off bit by bit. Oliver had wanted to buy as much as he could as some sort of penance for what had happened to Tommy, but Queen Consolidated hadn't been in any position itself to be doing mergers or takeovers of any sort. He'd bought some smaller holdings, but the rest were still up for grabs. The interest in the Luthor Corp. files she was confused by. She knew all the major international companies did some business together, but that seemed highly suspicious and she wondered if they weren't the ones behind this.

"Can you do that, Blondie? Can you get the files for me?" he stepped in close to her, not touching her, but she knew he could if he wanted to and that was enough to frighten her.

"Ye...yes. I can get the files." she stammered, "But..."

"But what, sweetheart? Don't make this any harder than it needs to be." his voice had lowered dangerously and she questioned whether she was making the right decision. Maybe she should just do as he asked and get them out of there. But then her eyes shifted to the guns the other two held and the fact that they weren't wearing masks and with a cold clarity she realized they weren't going to just be let go.

"I...don't have the password. Those files are only accessible by the CEO. Oliver is the only one who can get access." she looked around nervously, trying not to make eye contact with the man in front of her.

"And you're trying to tell me that one of Queen Consolidated's prize techno geeks can't get those files?" he didn't believe her.

"No. I can't." she said in a rush, "I wrote the protocol for that database. I made it so that it could not be accessed in any way unless you had the correct password. Any attempt to hack into it, or guess the password will wipe the information." Felicity thought as fast as she could to make up a story she hoped was believable. In truth she could get into the files he wanted in just a few minutes.

"So he can get in too, is that what you're telling me? One of you is expendable then. Good. I can work with that." he made a sharp motion with his hand and suddenly she had harsh hands wrapped around her upper arms as his guards grabbed her.

"No!" she screamed, "Please, don't hurt him!" the words poured from her mouth before she could stop them.

She gasped in pain as the hard muzzle of a gun was shoved into her ribs. "You're going to settle yourself down, or we'll end this now."

With a ragged breath she forced herself to stop struggling.

"Good girl. Now, let's go see Mr. Queen and find out if he wants to do this the easy way or the hard way." He gave her one more cold look and turned for the door.

Felicity was drug between the two gunmen, her feet only hitting the ground every few steps. She bit down on her lip to keep from crying out in pain as they made no attempt to take her injured wrist into consideration.

Wherever they were it was big. Nondescript hallways ran in multiple directions. The little she could see as she was hurried along had no discerning features, just grey cinderblock and low lighting.

They burst through a door at the end of one of the long hallways. The room looked almost exactly like the one she had been kept it. Large, dark, and cold.

Across the room, under one solitary bulb she could see Oliver and Digg as well as two more guards.

"Oliver!" she exclaimed, his name being ripped from her without thought. His head barely twitched and a whine of panic filled her ears.

She blinked watery eyes as she looked at them, and there was no doubt now that this was truly about the Queens and not the Hood. No one who was after the Hood would leave him with only his hands tied in front of him, they'd have him trussed up like a Christmas goose. Digg was the only real threat in their eyes, and he had been bound hand and foot to a chair. His jaw was set, but when she locked eyes with him he looked unworried.

But Oliver was injured. He sat propped against a pillar. The right side of his head had a long, bloody gash that had dripped all over his shirt collar and down his front. His eyes were half opened, and unfocused, and all the training in the world wouldn't do him any good if he had some sort of head trauma.

She was crowded between the two men still, their fingers digging into her upper arms, so when the leader gave them a nod of his head she doesn't see it coming.

Suddenly she was being shoved forward to land hard right in front of Oliver. Her hands went down to break her fall, knees cracking on the cement. She tried to pull her left hand back in time, but couldn't. She cried out at the blinding pain that tore up her arm and thought she may have blacked out for a second.

When she can hear again it's Digg's angry voice shouting obscenities that she focuses on.

Oliver must have been more aware than she had suspected. He'd managed to pull her towards him some. She lay half on his outstretched legs, her head pillowed against his stomach, his bound hands draped over her offering what protection they could.

She kept her eyes mostly shut to give herself an extra moment. Now that she was closer she could see Oliver's hands were only restrained with a plastic ziptie. Their odds were looking better. She knew he could bust through those with no problem. Hell, even she could do that, Digg had shown her how a couple of months ago. It was just about buying time until the right moment.

"Now that we're all together, let's get what we came here for."

Felicity sat up slowly, her back turned to the others. Oliver's eyes met hers and she could see the concern for her, but also the anger.

She slid out from under his arm and sat next to him, pressed into his side, his shoulder and left arm blocking most of her torso as she curled into him, making herself as small a target as possible.

"I'm not giving you anything." Oliver spat out. She could feel the tension roll through him, almost pulsing out in waves as he kept himself under control. For now.

The leader just laughed. "I think you are, Mr. Queen. See, Blondie over there already told me you're the man with the magic word. So either you tell her what it is or I kill her and you do it yourself."

"I'm sorry, Oliver. He wanted me to transfer files, but I told him they were only accessible by the CEO. I didn't know what else to do. He had a gun, and..." her frantic babble of words served two purposes. One, it let Oliver know what story she'd told them, and two, it let Oliver know she might be scared, but she wasn't stupid and she was ready.

Oliver dropped his hands over her knee and gave it a squeeze. "It's ok, it's not your fault."

He turned back to the man and leveled him with a glare. "If I tell her the password you'll let her go." it wasn't a question.

The man spread his hands wide, "My issue isn't with her, Mr. Queen. It's not really with you either. I'm just doing my job. If your girl does what I ask no one gets hurt."

She knew Oliver didn't buy it for a second, but he made a show of shifting towards her. "My father's birthday." he said evenly and she nodded with a gulp.

Before she could process what was happening she was being snatched up again. Oliver made a grab for her but she already being drug away. A cold fist of fear clenched her stomach as somehow she knew if they were separated they'd never get out alive. They had to make their move now. But how?

Oliver had struggled to his feet when she'd been torn away, the two guards who had been in the room had their guns trained on him.

A thought crossed her mind, and before she could over think it she acted.

"No! Please, stop! Just...let me say goodbye, ok." she didn't have to fake the tears that were now rolling down her cheeks. "Let me tell him goodbye, please."

The man holding her had paused, and she held her breath until the leader let out an irritated huff and motioned to let her go.

It was exactly as she'd hoped. She caught Digg's eye as she passed and prayed he knew what she was planning. A slight lowering of his head let her know he did.

Felicity quickened her pace and crashed into Oliver's chest, cupping his face in her hands. Before she could lose her nerve she glanced once at his eyes and then kissed him.

She didn't think she'd feel anything. She thought that being held at gunpoint after surviving a car accident would have drained any bit of desire she could have possibly had.

She'd been wrong.

Kissing Oliver was exactly what she hoped it would be. When his tongue teased her lips her stomach flipped. That wasn't exactly necessary for the ruse.

Felicity lost herself in the moment, temporarily forgetting where they were, or why she was kissing him senseless. His hands had spanned her waist, teasing at the skin where her shirt had ridden up. Everything dropped away. All she knew was Oliver; his lips, his hands, his taste, his touch. He flowed over every part of her, leaving her nerve endings singing and sparks of electricity at every point of contact.

A loud clearing of a throat made her pull back slightly, Oliver's dark eyes startling her. With a rush it all came back to her, there was no time to be embarrassed.

She gave him a small smile and leaned in close to his ear. "I'll take the one on the left." she whispered, and then spun, planting her foot and landing her other heel directly in the midsection of the man behind her.

Their captors didn't know that Oliver was really the Hood and could have broken from the zip tie much earlier if he'd wanted to. They didn't know that Digg had arms like iron hidden beneath his dress shirt. And they didn't know that Felicity Smoak was a damn genius and had been learning close quarters combat from Digg for the past year.

Oliver tore through the handcuffs like they were no more than tissue paper. Digg gave a roar that reverberated throughout the space and all that could be heard was the splintering of wood as the chair he'd been tied to was reduced to kindling.

Although there were technically outnumbered, they had the element of surprise.

The one Felicity had knocked down came at her again and she did exactly as she'd been trained, using the man's own momentum to flip him up and over her shoulder, not even wincing when his head struck the hard floor. She spied the gun slipping from his grasp and she grabbed it up, thumbing off the safety and stepping back so she could bring it up in front of her training it on the two men currently grappling with Oliver.

Use your environment to your advantage, Digg's voice ran through her head as she ducked behind the pillar Oliver had been leaning against just as bullets zinged by. Mortar dust flew off inches from her head and she slunk down, completely hidden.

She could hear the sounds of bodies colliding, grunts of pain, and an occasional bullet being fired. She could only hope that Oliver and Digg had the upper hand.

The leader had been frozen in surprise for a moment at the unexpected turn of events. Felicity made the shadows work for her and slipped further into the darkened room before turning back and heading for the front wall.

She ended up behind him just as he managed to find a clear shot on Digg. Without hesitation she pushed the muzzle of her gun into his lower back. "I wouldn't do that if I were you."

The shot was lost as Digg did away with his last opponent and Oliver did the same.

"Drop it." she commanded, her finger over the trigger.

Digg had picked up a weapon as well and had it trained on him too. With everyone else incapacitated cool relief flowed through her. Her eyes shot to Oliver, and that was her mistake.

Without warning the man spun, and quicker than she could blink he'd taken her gun and now had her flush against his chest, his own gun at her temple.

Oliver started forward and then stopped, "No no, Mr. Queen. I'd suggest you not take another step unless you'd like to see her pretty blonde hair splattered all over the place. Seems like you have some tricks up your sleeve, but...I don't need tricks. A bullet will do just fine."

Oliver's face hardened, and every muscle in his body was contracted, waiting for an opening.

Digg hadn't dropped his gun and still had it trained on the man now holding Felicity hostage. She knew Digg didn't have a clear shot, and she tried to stay calm even though she could feel the cold metal against her head.

Oliver's eyes locked on hers. They were steady and calm. She took the deepest breath she could with an arm locked around her throat, and let him knew she was ready. She slid her eyes to Digg and then shut them tight before letting all her weight drop to the floor.

A shot rang out, and a heavy mass fell on top of her. She felt a moment of panic and then she was free and being hauled into Oliver's embrace.

She buried her face in his chest, and let him support her as she shook. Now that it was over every horrible, terrible thought of what could of happened ran through her head on a loop.

Oliver's hands coasted over her head and back, as she clutched a handful of his shirt and tried to stay upright.

"You were amazing." he whispered in her ear, and she lifted wet eyes to look at him.

She honestly didn't know if he was talking about the kiss, or the way she'd taken out one of the bad guys. When the hand on her head came around to cup her neck and jaw she thought it might be the former.

"Ol...Oliver..." she began, hesitantly but stopped short when the metal door banged open hard and bright light flooded the space.

Oliver spun her to the right, putting his body between her and the door.

A familiar voice calling out "SCPD!" made her sag in relief.

It was Detective Lance, along with what looked like half his station.

"Area's clear." Digg said, holding up his hands, gun pointed towards the ceiling to show he wasn't a threat.

"It's always you three, isn't it?" Lance asked sardonically.

Oliver turned her back towards the door, but didn't release her. "How'd you know?" he asked suspiciously.

Lance gave him a look of disdain before replying, "You really think Oliver Queen's car can be hit by a large black van, in broad daylight, the occupants of the car vanish, and no one reports it?"

Oliver gave him a slight nod and Lance continued. "We got lucky and caught the van on traffic cameras. Took a while, but we finally tracked it to the warehouse district. Then it was a matter of finding the right building."

"Well, lucky for us my driver is a highly trained soldier. Mr. Diggle took advantage of a distraction and was able to keep us safe."

"A distraction huh?" Lance lifted an eyebrow, not entirely believing Digg acted on his own.

Felicity couldn't help the blush the crept over her face as she remembered exactly what that distraction had been, and it didn't go unnoticed by the detective.

"Surprised you didn't just call your hooded friend, Ms. Smoak."

"Don't underestimate Felicity, Detective. She can be quite the fighter when she needs to be." The pride in Oliver's voice couldn't be missed.

"That why you've got fuchsia lipstick smeared all over your face, Queen? I don't think it's your color." Lance countered, and Felicity actually groaned and buried her face in his chest.

Oliver to his credit only pulled her in closer and looked down at her, "I don't know. I think it might be."

Medics were called in, and for once Oliver was forced to sit and get proper treatment. Digg had gotten off the lightest since he'd had the benefit of a seatbelt and airbags. Felicity's head was cleaned and closed with some butterfly bandages. Her wrist was put in a splint and wrapped which made her grumble about not being able to type as well. Oliver allowed them to clean his head, but refused to go to the hospital for stitches. He suffered through application of the same butterfly bandages only because Felicity stood behind him and kept a hand on his shoulder until the medic was finished.

They all gave their statements and then Detective Lance offered them rides home. As she got into a waiting patrol car her eyes met Oliver's over the door and she gave him a sad smile. She had wanted a chance to talk to him, but she wasn't going to get that right then.

By the time she made it home she was sore, and shaking from the adrenaline, and the last thing she wanted was to be alone. She took the quickest shower of her life, changed into non-bloody clothes, and grabbed a couple twenties out of her emergency cash stash before calling a cab.

She'd been standing on the doorstep of her apartment when she'd realized her purse, keys, phone, and tablet were all still in the car, which means they were probably in police custody. Thankfully she had an extra key hidden away and was able to get into her home.

The cabbie gave her a strange look when he dropped her off in the Glades in front of a still under reconstruction night club. She paid the man and then ran quickly for the back door, keying in her code, before darting down the stairs.

As soon as she flicked on the lights she took a real breath and felt some of the panic and tension leach out of her. She felt safe there. Her computers, her equipment, Oliver's Hood outfit standing in the case behind her...she'd be ok now.

She tried to busy herself by checking her feeds, and running her weekly back up programs, but her thoughts kept straying back to that kiss. She hadn't been imagining things, he'd kissed her back, she knew he had.

Felicity sat back in her chair, her fingers unknowingly touching her lips. She shook her head ruefully and sat up straighter. He'd probably ignore it, and she'd be forced to do the same.

"I'm sorry we didn't get a chance to talk earlier." a voice said from behind her causing her to jump in her seat.

She turned quickly to see Oliver standing behind her, hands in his pockets, looking almost sheepish.

"Jesus, Oliver! You need a bell! Like I haven't been scared enough for one day!" she exploded, jumping to her feet. All her fear, apprehension, and nerves finding an outlet when he'd startled her.

He reached a hand out and then brought it back as if he didn't know if it was ok to touch her. "I'm sorry."

"It's alright, I'm just jumpy. Kind of goes along with the territory." she said with a small shrug.

"You really were amazing. You did a good job in there." she couldn't read his expression, but she flushed anyways.

"I just...I just did what I had to do. I mean, Digg's been training me, so I know in my head what I'm supposed to do, but that doesn't mean it's so easy when you have to do it for real. It's not controlled, and there aren't any bullets when we're training, so that whole fear of imminent death is sort of mitigated and makes things a lot easier. But some of the training stuck and I'm grateful or I'd have more than a sprained wrist, and..." she trailed off because Oliver had suddenly stepped into her space, one hand wrapping around her waist, the other planting itself on the desk behind her. She was trapped.

"Um...Oliver...wh..." her eyes darted nervously around the room, not wanting to look him in the eye.

"I hope Digg hasn't been training you for _everything_ you did today." his voice was low, and she reached a hand up hesitantly between them.

"Uh, no. Not everything." she said quietly, finally meeting his eyes. "I just thought of that all on my own."

The hand at her waist stroked small circles where her shirt met her pants until the fabric had moved enough for him to reach skin. She gasped when she felt him. A small, almost predatory smile lit up his face and her heart thudded loudly in her chest.

"I approve of your diversionary tactics." he said throatily, the hand on the desk coming up to cup her jaw, his thumb coasting over her cheek. "In fact, I think maybe we should do some _training_ of our own, just in case."

Felicity's breath caught in her throat as she stared at him, not believing what he was saying. But the near black of his pupils and the way he was now pressed flush against her made her reconsider.

"I think that might not be such a bad idea." she agreed. And before the words were fully out of her mouth his lips were on hers.

If she had thought the kiss they'd shared earlier was good, this one...this one blew the other out of the water. This was Oliver kissing her now, holding nothing back. His lips moved over hers, demanding and insistent, her mouth falling open to allow him access.

When his tongue stroked over hers she moaned, and raised herself up on her toes, her arms wrapping around his neck to give her leverage the splint on her wrist forgotten. Both his hands were under her shirt now, leaving trails of fire on her skin wherever they touched. When she lifted one thigh to lay against his leg he growled and surged into her, pushing her back onto her desk. She let out a little laugh at the reaction she'd gotten from him, and he growled again, his hand landing on her leg and hitching it even higher. Her laugh turned into another moan.

He kissed her until she had to pull away for air, her breath coming out in pants. Oliver was breathing heavy too and she felt a surge of pride.

Slowly she let her hands slide off his neck and he stepped back. She's still half sitting on her desk, his thigh between hers. His fingers trailed over her cheek, her jaw, down her neck, and then he wasn't touching her anymore.

He wasn't running though. She made herself look at him, to see his reaction, and he seemed calm.

"I'll pick you up for _training_ tomorrow at seven." he said evenly, but looking entirely too smug, like he hadn't just kissed her senseless and before she could even begin to form a reply he was gone.

Felicity sat, frozen, until an alarm beeped behind her causing her to jump suddenly and almost end up on the floor. She sank back into her chair, her hands on autopilot as she did what she needed to do, the brace on her wrist only slowing her down a bit.

Her stomach flipped as she remembered what he'd just done to her. She found herself lost in the memory before she literally shook herself on it. She had until seven the next night. For now, she needed to learn all she could about Luthor Corp. She had a feeling they'd be making a trip to Metropolis very soon.


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Hope this doesn't have too many Tommy feels. This one sort of wants to be a multi-chapter fic of it's own. But I think it's good this way as well. Maybe at some point I'll come back to it. But for now it can exist like this. Hope you enjoy. Let me know what you think!**

**Trope#6-The baby trope**

Felicity had only been home for a few hours when the text alert on her phone went off; repeatedly. It was Oliver, and all it said was for her to get back to the lair asap.

With wild thoughts she threw on leggings and an old sweatshirt from college before she scooped up her bag and phone and headed out the door. There was no active mission she was aware of. Digg had left early for a long weekend with Carly, and Oliver had promised he would be going home as well. She hadn't even planned on going into the lair for at least twenty-four hours.

Thankfully the streets were practically deserted and the lights were in her favor. As she clattered down the steel stairs her heart was in her throat.

"Oliver," she called out before going around the corner, "What's wrong?"

When she saw him she came to a halt. He stood in front of her, bare chested, holding a wailing, squirming blanket covered entity.

He looked petrified.

"Wha...what is that?" she stuttered.

"It's a baby." he said harshly, which only made the bundle in his arms cry louder.

"I can see that, but where did it come from and why do you...oh god..." her hand came up to cover her mouth as the realization that it was Oliver's child washed over her. Why had her stomach just dropped like she'd stepped off a cliff?

His eyes narrowed and he gestured towards the car seat she now noticed sitting on the desk by the computers. "Read the note." he directed, moving slowly and haltingly out of the way. She'd never seen him so nervous and unsure before.

With shaking hands she approached them. A folded piece of paper lay atop the seat, which was piled high with blankets, a bottle, and what appeared to be Oliver's shirt with a very noticeable stain on it.

The letter was typed, on standard printer paper, with no distinguishing marks.

_Tommy, _

_ You probably don't remember me. It was one night. You were sad, and I was there. I don't regret what we did or what we made, but I lost everything in the quake. I got out of Starling City, but I can't start a new life with her. It's just too hard. You and your family can give her everything she needs. Please take care of her. _

It was unsigned. And no matter how many times she flipped the paper from front to back nothing new appeared to tell her who had sent it.

Tommy's baby. Not Oliver's.

She raised already wet eyes to see him standing there, barely aware of what he held. He was so close to the edge she could see him teetering. He'd been doing so well since he'd come back. But this...this had the ability to send him running again.

Before she knew what was happening he was shoving the baby in her arms, blanket and all.

"Oliver!" she choked out, her hands coming up automatically to hold the slight weight to her chest, "I don't..."

"Please." he said raggedly, "Just...I need a minute, okay."

"Okay," she answered. How could she say no to him just then.

He disappeared like a ghost into the training room, door shutting firmly behind him.

The baby continued to cry, and finally Felicity focused on her.

Enough of the blanket had fallen away that she could make out a scrunched up red face, and dark hair. She had no idea how old she was, but she looked very young. Maybe a month old.

Felicity had no experience with children. She'd spent her childhood rebuilding computers and watching the Discovery channel, not babysitting.

But the baby wasn't stopping, and they had to do something to quiet her down. Hesitantly she moved a few steps and sat in her chair. When she felt secure she slowly released one of her arms and let her bag finally slip off her shoulder.

"Hi...um...well, your mom didn't tell us your name. Maybe you don't have one. I don't know. I don't know anything about babies. Nothing. But I do know about the internet and I'm certain we can find out what we need there, okay. But I'm going to need for you to be patient with me. And with the big guy. He's kind of a mess right now. A lot like you, but for different reasons. I guess he's kind of like your uncle, so you're stuck with him. And I'm stuck with him too, so that means you're stuck with me. So we'd better figure this out."

The baby had quieted down some, now only whimpering slightly as she twisted her head back and forth. Felicity typed using one hand and pulled up the first site she could find that would give her information about babies.

In the next ten minutes she felt she'd at least skimmed the basics. If she was crying she was hungry, needed to be changed, or was tired. Those seemed like simple enough requests. But she was going to need some help.

She adjusted her hold, placing the baby's head on her shoulder so her little body laid lengthways, one hand under her butt, the other cupped behind her head.

The baby seemed to like this and let out a little sigh before finally falling silent.

"You look like a pro." Oliver said behind her. Felicity turned slowly in her chair to face him. He'd found another shirt, and stood a few feet away, arms crossed, watching them.

"Not hardly. But the internet is a wealth of information." she said quickly. His eyes were haunted, and he kept looking everywhere but at the baby.

"Yeah, but..." he waved a hand her direction and anger flashed through her as she realized what he was implying.

"You think because I have the...correct equipment to make one of these I magically know how to take care of them?" she asked incredulously. "I watched the neighbor's toddler once when I was ten. It was a horrible experience, and one I wish to never speak of again. You're the one with the sibling. You must remember stuff from when Thea was a baby."

He just shook his head. "No. There was a nanny, and I was seven. I remember looking at her now and then but...nothing more."

"What about Digg!" she said suddenly, "He has a nephew."

"I don't want to bother him with..." he cut himself off, but she knew he was going to say he didn't want to bother Digg with his problems. Oliver had already assumed responsibility for the baby whether he realized it or not. It went unnoticed by both of them that Oliver hadn't hesitated in calling her though.

"Okay," she said gently, knowing she was going to have to walk a fine line with him just then.

"Where was she?" Felicity asked,

"Next to the back door." he bit out, and she gasped in disbelief.

"But...what if she hadn't been found? What if...She could have been there all night! The note makes it sound like she didn't know that Tommy..." Felicity unconsciously held the baby tighter, a hand skimming over her hair.

"I know." Oliver ground out.

"Is there anything else in the bag?"

His shoulders lifted in response, "I haven't looked."

She lifted an eyebrow at him and then looked at the bag. He took the hint and pulled it towards him. There were several more blankets, a few outfits, and a small stack of diapers which looked absurdly tiny in his large hands. There was also a pouch that held an ice pack and two pre made bottles with another note.

"What does it say?" she asked nervously

He cleared his throat before he answered, "Just the name of the baby food she's been drinking." he'd obviously thought it was going to tell him something different.

"Formula." Felicity said immediately, "That's what she's drinking. It's called formula." at his confused expression she angled her head towards the screen. "I read about it. She should be eating every few hours and being changed that often too, and she probably won't sleep much. What with all the changing and eating..." she trailed off as Oliver's eyes seemed to glaze over.

A thought struck her and forced her to her feet. She walked towards him carefully, not wanting to disturb him or the baby who was now trying to smash her little face into Felicity's shoulder with surprising strength for something so small.

"Oliver," she said quietly, as she came to a stop in front of him. "Why haven't you called the police or taken her to a hospital?"

It had occurred to her that neither of them had done what would be expected. They had simply taken her on and started talking about feedings and looking up how to take care of her when they really had no claim on her.

He was so still she was worried he hadn't heard her.

"She's Tommy's." he said finally, the force behind his words almost making her step back.

She studied him carefully and tried to speak several times before she could get the words out, "But...Tommy's gone."

Oliver's eyes blazed with anger and pain and she wished nothing more than to be able to walk back what she'd said. "Which means she's my responsibility now!" he ground out.

Her eyes shut tight. She hurt for him. "I know you feel that way...but..." his head whipped towards her, daring her to finish. She swallowed heavily and continued. "But Oliver...this is a _baby_. Another human life. This isn't a bar tab, or a bookie that needs to be paid off. This is a commitment, a responsibility that I don't think you..."

"I understand, Felicity! Tommy died because I wasn't fast enough, because I wasn't good enough. Now his daughter doesn't have a father. I'm going to make this right." The look on his face was so intense she couldn't have looked away if she wanted to.

"And that's admirable, and even though I don't think you need to atone in that way, I respect that you feel like you do. But...think about what you're saying! How are you going to take on caring for an infant? How will this look to the public when you start carting around a car seat? How will you continue to be Green Arrow. Are we going to set up a nursery in the corner? Do you intend to be a father to this child, or just provide for her financially?" with every question she threw at him he flinched. She knew he hadn't thought any of it through, he was just reacting out of obligation and duty.

"You can't just make a decision like this without thinking about everything. And how do you suppose you'll be able to keep her? Do you think the Department of Child Services is just going to give you, Oliver Queen, custody of a baby?" as soon as the words were out of her mouth she gaped at him in shock. They'd never do that. He'd never be allowed to keep her. And there were no more Merlyn's left. She'd go into the system. She'd be lost.

In a few seconds Felicity saw all of that flash through his eyes.

"Felicity," he pleaded. He looked heartbroken and how could she tell him no. After everything he'd been through and everything he sacrificed.

"Okay..." she said shakily, "Okay...we'll figure it out."

The next thing she knew she was in his arms. Her and the baby, pressed into him. She felt his shaky exhale pass over her neck and shivered. When the baby let out a muffled squeak Felicity was struck with just exactly how domestic all of this was. It made her stomach flip, and her mind go places it shouldn't be going.

She was the one who stepped back, shifting the baby higher so her head was tucked under Felicity's chin.

"But Oliver...if we do this." she shut her eyes in almost disbelief that she was even considering such a thing, "If we do this...if we don't tell the police...then how are you going to explain her? If you of all people suddenly show up with a child...there are going to be questions. People are going to go digging."

"I know. Which is why you'll need to give her a new background." he said immediately.

She nodded slowly as she thought. Social security number, and a new birth date wouldn't be that difficult, she'd hacked more difficult servers. "There will need to be a birth certificate. That's the first thing they'll look up. If you want to put yourself down as the father we can do that, but...mother is the one thing that can't be left blank. I mean, I suppose we could just make up a random name, but then it would be necessary to create an entirely new identity for her too and that could become complicated..." she trailed off at the look in his eyes.

With a great gasp of air she knew. She knew what he was asking of her. Her mouth opened and shut but she couldn't say a word. The beginnings of a panic attack crept in, making her limbs numb and before anything could go wrong she handed him the baby.

It was her turn to run.

The baby was squalling now. "Felicity!" he called after her, but she didn't turn around.

"She probably needs to be changed." she choked out as she continued to head towards the back.

"I don't..." he started, but she whirled on him

"I don't either! Figure it out!" she pointed viciously towards the computer screen and disappeared through the door.

She didn't make it two feet before collapsing against the wall and sliding down to sit on the floor.

This was too much. She couldn't...she could not make up false documents that listed her as that child's mother, and Oliver her father. There was loyalty and then there was insanity, and this was definitely the latter.

She was committed to Oliver, committed to what they did, but...this was an entirely new level of commitment. And if she was being completely honest with herself, her feelings for Oliver had everything to do with it.

Not that this would have been easy if she hadn't been in love with him, but she was, she had been for awhile. Being tied to him like this in such an intimate way...how could she be expected to handle that. And she couldn't tell him. She couldn't admit that this would blur the lines between fantasy and reality so much one wouldn't be distinguishable from the other and that wasn't fair to either of them.

Because at some point he was going to fall for someone else, but in the eyes of the world he'd had a child with her. How would that affect them? Would she have to quit to protect his cover? Make the ultimate sacrifice and walk away from all of it? From him? From the baby? How was any of that fair?

But the other option wasn't really an option either. She knew he wasn't going to let this baby go. He was going to keep her. He was going to raise her the best he knew how. His absolution for Tommy's death finally had found a symbol, and right or wrong, Oliver was going to see it through.

So it seemed like her options were she could lose him now or lose him later. She let out a strangled half sob, half laugh at the thought and dropped her head into her hands.

Was she actually considering this? Was she actually going to falsify records for Tommy Merlyn's child that said she was the mother? Was she going to help Oliver care for this baby, because god knows he needed the help.

The night the Glades fell flashed through her mind and she winced and pressed her hands tight over her eyes. If she hadn't missed that second device Tommy would have lived. That baby would have her real father, and maybe every now and then he'd bring her by the club and Felicity would chuck her under the chin and laugh at Uncle Ollie's awkwardness in trying to hold her, but that would have been the extent of it. But she had failed. She'd failed the city, and she'd failed Tommy.

With a long exhale she wiped her eyes and pushed herself to her feet.

She'd be damned if she was going to fail his daughter.

Her own words floated back to her, something she had said to the baby not that long ago. She'd told her she was stuck with Oliver, and it was true. She'd tethered herself to him long ago, even when he was so far away she didn't know how he'd find his way back she'd waited. And he'd returned, a bit more broken, but she'd put him back together again. It's what she did.

So they'd do this. Damn the consequences, she'd see this through. She figured her life had stopped being her own the day he'd stepped into her office with a bullet riddled laptop, so this was just the natural progression of things.

When she stepped back into the main room on shaky legs she didn't expect to see him sitting in her chair, feeding the baby. The corner of her desk had been turned into a changing table and, although it looked like he'd gone through a few diapers, he seemed to have been successful.

"Hey," she said softly, not wanting to disturb either of them.

He looked up quickly, his eyes showing his apology. "Felicity," he began but she stopped him with a hand on his shoulder.

"It's ok. You were right before. We owe her. Both of us. So...I'm in." she told him, but he was already shaking his head.

"No. It's too much. I had no right. I'll do it the legal way. I've got money and good lawyers. I can make a case."

"And you'll fail. And she'll be in the care of the city the entire time. And who is going to want to adopt a Merlyn? No one." her voice broke off as she leaned over him slightly, looking at her properly for the first time. "She's got his nose."

The bottle slipped from her bow lips as Oliver's hand went slack, but the baby had fallen asleep and hadn't noticed. Felicity reached out and took the bottle from his hand, sitting it on the desk before she kneeled beside him.

"Thank you." he said so softly she almost didn't hear him. She reached out slowly and stroked one finger over the back of the baby's tiny hand, gasping when she gripped it in her sleep.

"She's strong." Oliver said

"She'll have to be if she's joining Team Arrow." Felicity said, ignoring the tears she could feel slipping down her face.

Oliver's hand came to fall over the back of her neck, fingers stroking small circles against her bare skin. "Thank you," he said again.

All Felicity could do was nod. "We can do this right? We can keep her safe." Two hours ago she hadn't know this little person existed, and now she was claiming her.

"We'll keep her safe." Oliver vowed, his voice sure.

Felicity nodded, shifting in closer so she could stare at the sleeping baby, unconsciously pressing against his leg as she did.

"Oh, little Alice, what have you gotten yourself into?" she thought aloud

"Alice?" Oliver asked

Felicity startled some and looked up at him. "Sorry, it just sort of slipped out. You know, like Alice in Wonderland. She falls down the rabbit hole. This..." she looked around the lair for emphasis, "This is sort of like the rabbit hole. I didn't mean anything by it though..."

"She needs a name." he replied, "I kind of like Alice."

"What was Tommy's mother's name?" she asked suddenly

"Rebecca." Oliver answered immediately.

"Alice Rebecca...Queen." she said slowly, her eyes slipping from the baby to Oliver as the name settled within him.

His head fell back against the chair. She let her free hand land on his knee, giving him a squeeze of support.

"I'm doing the right thing, aren't I?" he asked after a long beat.

She took a stuttered breath before answering, "I think you're doing the only thing you can do." Whether that ended up being right or wrong remained to be seen.

They stayed like that until Alice stirred. Oliver showed Felicity how to change her diaper, and by the time she'd mastered it they were running dangerously low on supplies. She ended up making a run to the twenty-four hour bodega down the street and stocked up on diapers and formula.

When she returned Alice was a wailing disaster that had Oliver walking in circles, patting her back and bouncing up and down trying to get her to calm. Another bottle did the trick and they finally got her to sleep in her car seat before they collapsed themselves.

Felicity decided to use the quiet to start her highly illegal activity. She let Oliver pick Alice's birthdate. He used the same day of the month as Tommy's birthday and she'd laid a hand over his when he'd told her why he'd chosen it.

When it came time to enter their names on the form she hesitated. One more time Oliver gave her an out, but she shook her head and quickly typed in 'Felicity Megan Smoak' in the space for mother.

"Wow," she said, staring at the screen, "I never actually thought I'd ever see that."

Oliver looked at her quizzically, "Really?"

She shook her head, "No, never really thought of myself as the mother type. And then with this...well..." she let it go unsaid, but working for a superhero and having a family didn't seem to mix.

Oliver's hands had clenched when she put his name in, and she wisely stayed quiet. A few more keystrokes, and the baby was official. Felicity took the time to falsify hospital records to make it look like she'd been a patient. She also dug back through the last several months of photos of Oliver and her to make sure there weren't any that were missing an obviously apparent baby bump, but they'd managed to stay out of the limelight recently. She hoped if anyone questioned she'd be able to play off that she hadn't shown that much and had been trying to keep it a secret.

It seemed completely surreal that she was even considering any of this. All she could do was push through and keep working because if she stopped she'd probably freak out.

Oliver had an overnight delivery of every imaginable baby supply ever created sent to both the mansion and the club. She had a good laugh as he attempted to put together the crib, finally insisting he hold Alice while she finished it. The glare he sent her way only made her laugh more.

The next two days were a blur. They barely left the lair. Felicity went home once to shower and change and when she returned Oliver latched on to her with wild eyes and begged her not to leave him again.

Little Alice had gone from only occasionally being fussy to having hour long meltdowns all times of the day and night. Eventually the three of them had collapsed on the couch, exhausted. Oliver's arm was looped lightly around Felicity's shoulders as she used him as a pillow. Alice sprawled over her chest, her little hands clutching loops of Felicity's hair as she slept.

Felicity woke with a start, immediately realizing the weight on her chest was missing. Her hand shot out and grabbed Oliver. "Wake up! The baby's gone!" she cried frantically,

He came to just as suddenly, looking around in panic. "Where is she?"

They were both on their feet. Felicity dropped to her knees to look under the couch, hoping the baby hadn't rolled off her at some point. Fear rose in her throat, but she wasn't there. She barely registered as Oliver grasped her by the elbow and helped her to her feet.

They burst into the training room and stopped dead. John Diggle strolled the edge of the training mat. Burp cloth over one shoulder, baby positioned perfectly, patting her back gently as he walked a slow and steady pace.

"Oh god, she's ok!" Felicity gasped out, clutching Oliver's arm as he too let out an exhale of relief.

Digg leveled them with a look. "You two care to explain why I walked into the lair to find it turned into a daycare?"

Oliver seemed to have recovered from their fright first and went to reclaim Alice, transferring her to his arms with ease now.

There was a gleam of mischief in his eyes that worried Felicity, and as she joined his side she wondered what he was up to.

Alice had woken up and was staring at Oliver with wide blue eyes. "Alice, I see you've met your Uncle Digg." he said gently to her, and Felicity saw Digg's eyes go wide in surprise. But if the uptick in Oliver's mouth was any indication, he was about to go in for the kill.

Deliberately, Oliver stepped closer to Felicity. "Digg, we'd like you to meet our daughter."


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: This is the 'bank hostage' trope. Glad you're still liking these. Hope you enjoy, let me know what you think!**

The tires squealed as Digg skidded to a halt, half on the curb. Oliver jumped from the car before it was fully stopped.

Starling National and Trust loomed overhead, casting dark shadows over the plaza in front of them. Already the space was filled with police cars, SWAT vans, and ambulances. The media wouldn't be far behind.

He'd been talking to Laurel on the phone, as Digg drove him to a nearby coffee shop. He'd barely spoken to her since he'd been back and he was trying to put his past to rights. She'd told him she needed to stop in at the bank and then she'd be on her way.

She was excited to tell him about her new job. There was an ease to their conversation that made him think things wouldn't be awkward. And then he'd heard her gasp, and what sounded like gunfire before there was shouting and her frantic voice calling his name. Then there had been nothing.

Oliver ignored a uniformed officer who was beginning to string yellow police tape, running past him and heading straight for a familiar figure.

"Lance!" Oliver shouted. Detective Lance stood talking to a man decked out in full combat gear carrying an automatic rifle.

"Queen, what the hell are you doing here, get back across the line." Lance ordered, already turning his attention away.

"Laurel's in there!" Oliver yelled as he came to a halt. Lance turned slowly, his face paling.

"What did you say?"

"Laurel's in there. I was talking to her right as she went in. She was supposed to meet me for coffee afterwards." Everything in him screamed to put the hood on, find a vantage point on a neighboring building, and find a way in.

He could see the stark terror on Lance's face before he quickly let a hardened mask drop. "Get across the line, Queen." he barked before motioning to two nearby officers to make sure Oliver did as requested.

Oliver angrily shook off their hands as he ducked under the police tape to find Digg waiting for him. His jaw was set and there was a look in his eyes Oliver had never seen before.

A phone was shoved in Oliver's face and he looked at it in confusion. Why would Digg be giving him his phone while Laurel was trapped inside the bank? When he looked down he was surprised to see it was a text from Felicity sent to both Digg and Oliver.

'_inside sn&t. 5 shooters. hiding.'_

Cold fear washed over him. Felicity was inside.

Restraint was no longer an option. He didn't say a word to Digg, and he didn't need to. They were both heading back to the car at a run, their new mission set in an unspoken agreement.

Digg found a mostly deserted street two blocks away. The sounds of sirens still cut through the air, and propelled Oliver to move faster as he grabbed his bag out of the trunk and ducked back into the car to change.

He slipped a comm link into his ear as he ran silently through alleyways, bow clutched securely in his hand. He knew Digg would already be pulling up blueprints of the bank and the surrounding buildings.

The structure behind the bank looked abandoned. With one long leap he was on the second floor of the fire escape. He took the steps three at a time heading for the security of the roof.

Digg suddenly spoke in his ear, "She's calling your phone."

"Patch her through!" he ordered, his feet continued to move as he listened for the sound of Digg answering the line.

"Felicity. Stay quiet. Don't draw any attention to yourself." he said as soon as the line was active, not wanting her in any more danger than she was already in. "I'm looking for a way in now."

He could hear how the breath caught in her throat, and her fear made him angry. "Oliver..." she said so quietly it was almost inaudible and he froze.

"Felicity! Stay quiet!" he hissed, not understanding why she'd be risking herself to talk to him.

But she ignored him, "Laurel's here too."

Ice ran through his veins. She was taking the chance of calling him, to tell him about Laurel, because she was Felicity and she put him first, every time.

"I know, now get off the line." he ground out, hating how frustrated he sounded, and hoping she didn't think he was upset with her. He just needed her to be safe.

He heard her start to say something and then a startled scream. It took every ounce of control he had not to yell her name.

"Well, well, well. What do we have here? A little mouse hiding out? Calling the police were you?" he heard a low voice say, away from the phone.

"N...no." Felicity stammered out, terror in her voice.

"Not the police? Then who could you have been calling?" the voice said again.

There was a pause before Felicity answered, "My...my boyfriend."

Oliver could tell she was lying, but hopefully the bank robbers wouldn't be able to. Calling your boyfriend when you were trapped in a bank as a hostage made sense, calling your employer didn't.

The ruse worked for half a minute, until whoever had found her must have looked at the phone, "Oliver Queen? That's your boyfriend?" he asked, incredulous.

Even from feet away, Felicity's gasp was clear through the receiver.

"Yo, boss! You'll never guess the present that just dropped into our laps. Blondie here is dating the richest dude in the city!"

Oliver's stomach rolled. Felicity had just become the most valuable hostage in the bank, and the robber's biggest bargaining chip.

He cursed under his breath and started moving again. The leap to the rooftop of the bank was wide, but he didn't think, he just did it, rolling over his shoulder and coming up in a crouch as he headed to the edge of the roof.

"Mr. Queen, are you still there? How nice of you to loan us your pretty little girlfriend for the time. I'd hate for something to happen to her." a different voice was on the phone now.

He knew he shouldn't respond, but keeping silent was impossible. "If you touch her I will kill you!" he ground out, not caring how much he sounded like the Hood then. In some distant part of his mind he recognized the reverberation when he spoke that indicated he'd been put on speaker phone.

The voice just laughed, "I'm sure we'll be talking in the future." the tone was a threat. "Now, why don't you tell your rich playboy you love him and we can get back to business." the man directed at Felicity.

Oliver's breath caught in his chest until her heard her. He could almost see her, eyes wide and frightened, face pale with fear as she tried to stay brave. "Oliver...I..." she swallowed heavily, "I love you." she whispered, and then the line was dead.

Oliver swore vehemently as he peered over the edge and looked down. He couldn't even think about what he'd just heard.

"She's going to be their focus now." Digg said unnecessarily,

"I know that!" Oliver bit back, but he had to push it aside. He had to focus. Emotions would do nothing but get her hurt...or worse.

He needed to get off the roof and inside. SWAT teams would be looking for any way in and if he was spotted it would only make his task that much more difficult.

There was a roof top access door but it was locked. Without pause he used one of the arrows with the exploding tips and had pushed through before the smoke had cleared.

He'd been in the bank before and knew there was a wide mezzanine level above the main floor. As silently as possible he ran down three flights of stairs before ducking into a nondescript hallway.

A woman poked her head out and gave a startled squeak when she saw him. "Stay inside and lock the door." he growled, not breaking stride.

Through a set of glass double doors he could see the open mezzanine. The lighting in the hallway was bright, but the main floor of the bank mostly depended on giant windows to provide light. Luck was on his side; the angle of the sun left the side he was on in shadow.

He opened the door slowly, staying low and was able to slip out without a sound. Every noise made on the bank floor echoed in the space. He could hear frightened people crying, and whimpering.

Movement caught his eye on the other side of the level he was on. A gunman patrolled the balcony, his attention looking down on everyone below him.

Oliver resisted the urge to peer over the side. He wanted to see her. He wanted to know she was okay, even if she was frightened. He wanted her to know he was there. But he knew he had to eliminate the threat first.

He was halfway across the balcony on the right when a barrage of noise sounded from the bank lobby. Oliver ducked behind an overly large potted palm and watched the man, only fifty feet from him grin evilly before aiming his gun at the people below.

There was no hesitation, the arrow caught him straight in the chest, propelling him backwards, his gun falling uselessly by his side. The shouting from below was still continuing and no one seemed to suspect anything had happened above.

With no worry of being spotted on the mezzanine Oliver made his way back to the side he'd come in on. Moving slowly and carefully found a vantage point that allowed him to see the lobby without being seen himself.

Most of the hostages seemed to have been put together in one location near the teller counter.

Laurel and Felicity and a bank employee were being kept separate, three men with automatic weapons stood in front of them.

His world tunneled down to only the two of them. Two women. One who had defined his past, the other who was shaping his future. And in a moment of pure and quiet clarity everything slipped into place. He wasn't going to let either of them die, but any doubts or confusion he had was now gone. He cared for Felicity, more than he had ever realized. She knew everything about him and still accepted him for who he was. She challenged him, and supported him, and he did not want to consider a world where she wasn't in it.

Tension he hadn't even realized he'd been carrying eased out of him not that he could see her, until the one in the middle said something to her. He couldn't make out what she said but he recognized the defiant set of her chin and the way her eyes narrowed. The sharp retort of her face being slapped almost propelled Oliver over the railing.

Pure, unadulterated rage rose within him. One of the gunmen wrapped his hand in her ponytail and used it to jerk her to her feet. He was no longer capable of staying hidden, and without thought or preparation he let loose the arrow notched in his bow.

The force with which he'd let it go went straight through the man's forearm, and pinned it to his chest. The second arrow ensured he'd never touch her again.

Felicity scuttled back from the man's body as it fell. Laurel clutched her arm and drew her close. The one in charge and another accomplice were on alert now, guns pointed to the second level.

Oliver aimed at the one standing over the large group of hostages, taking him down in one. There were more screams now, until the leader fired a round of shots into the air and yelled for silence.

"Green Arrow! I know you're there! Stop hiding!" he shouted into the air, his eyes constantly scanning the balcony area.

Oliver felt confident he could end the man now. He was down to only one partner now and had to know the odds were no longer in his favor, but he'd trained his weapon on Felicity and Laurel and it made Oliver nervous.

Knowing he had no time to lose Oliver moved to a service stairwell he'd spotted earlier and made his way down as quick as possible.

When he exited he could see everything but knew he hadn't been spotted. Laurel and Felicity had been moved, closer to the end of the teller counter. The leader stood near a small podium holding a flower arrangement, giving Oliver a target.

He fired the arrow slightly off center, knowing Felicity would recognize it as one of the ones with the delayed detonation. Her eyes widened and she wasted no time in grabbing Laurel by the elbow and hauling her around the corner of the teller desk, forcing both of them to the ground as the arrow exploded.

The resulting confusion did exactly what he wanted it to do. The smoke provided cover for the hostages who ran en masse towards the exits, and it allowed Oliver to slip into a better location although he could no longer see Felicity.

Two quick shots and the only one he hadn't eliminated was the one in charge. A sliver of fear went through him as he realized the man had used Oliver's own distraction to his own advantage and was hiding now as well.

Arrow notched and at the ready he scanned the space, trying to drown out the sounds of the frantic hostages as they ran for the doors.

A spatter of gunfire made him whirl to his right. The sight that greeted him sent a flare of rage through him so fast and with such ferocity he could hear his bow begin to creak in his hand from the force of his grip.

Felicity was in a headlock, her back pulled tight to the head shooter who had his gun pointed roughly in her back.

"I think it's time we called your boyfriend back. See if he can't help us get out of here." the man snarled, pulling Felicity so she almost entirely in front of him, minimizing Oliver's target.

"You've lost. Give up now and you might live." Oliver growled, knowing he had no intention of letting the man live.

"And go to prison? No thanks. I think I'll take my chances." he sneered. "You, come over here. Slowly. And don't try anything." he'd directed his command to Laurel.

Oliver didn't so much as breath. Laurel's eyes lifted to his. She'd trusted the vigilante last year, but now...he wasn't so sure.

Laurel advanced cautiously, the gunman's attention now forced to divide between Laurel and Oliver.

However, Oliver's attention didn't waver. When Laurel stumbled, whether accidentally or on purpose, the man's head turned slightly, which allowed Felicity to pull away.

It was all Oliver needed.

The arrow found it's home in the man's throat. But the bullet being fired a split second later took everyone by surprise.

As the body fell backwards, Laurel jerked Felicity out of the way, both of them falling to the ground in a heap.

Everything stopped as he saw her hiss in pain and cover her side with her palm. A spreading red stain told him everything he needed to know. The white buzz of panic that filled his ears was foreign, and drowned out everything else.

The strangled "No!" that tore from his throat was covered by the people still in the bank attempting to escape.

It was shock that left him standing there, bow hanging limply at his side. When she pulled her blouse up to get a better look he saw her shoulders slump in relief and then her eyes raised to his.

If anyone had been looking at them just then they'd have seen it all. She mouthed 'I'm okay', and shifted her eyes to the side, ordering him to leave.

The sound of the SWAT team bursting in the front doors brought all his senses back, and sent him sprinting into the shadows. His heart pounded as he retraced his steps, heading for empty hallways.

"I got them all." he said into the comm link when he knew he was alone, unable to hide the tremor in his voice. "She's hurt...I don't know how bad."

"I'm two blocks up from where I dropped you, your bag is in the trash can as you exit the parking lot." Digg answered, his tone hard.

The daylight that greeted him seemed harsh, and he only just managed to hop a chain link fence before another group of officers swarmed the door he'd just exited.

He grabbed the bag as surreptitiously as possible and ducked behind a group of bushes. All he took time to stow was his quiver and bow and swap his hood out for a t-shirt, the rest he'd do in the car.

Digg was where he said he'd be. Oliver forced himself to approach the car at a normal pace instead of running for it like he wanted to. However, as soon as the door shut behind him he bellowed "Go!", although Digg didn't have to be told twice.

Somehow he found a spot close to the taped off area surrounding the bank, but far away from where the media had set up. This allowed Oliver to prowl the edge of the line without drawing the attention of the press.

It took time for the SWAT team to sweep the building and take the hostages out. They were treated by waiting EMTs and then shuffled over to officers who needed their statements while the experience was still fresh in their minds. He knew it would take Felicity longer, and hoped her injury didn't require her going to the hospital. He needed to see her.

He'd caught Lance's eye once and the detective had made his way over begrudgingly to inform him that he'd had word Laurel was fine. Apparently word hadn't gotten to him that Oliver's 'girlfriend' had been one of the main hostages and shot during the standoff. Oliver had thanked him automatically, but his entire focus was on seeing Felicity.

Family members of the hostages had been allowed inside a small tent to wait, but Oliver was forced to stay near his car, even though he knew there was no one to greet Felicity. He could have pushed his way in, but the unwanted media attention wouldn't have been fair to the other people.

When the hostages were released from the police a huge roar of applause went up from the crowd of onlookers. As they made their way into the tent he found himself craning his neck, hoping to catch a glance of her.

A flash of movement caught his attention and he watched as Laurel broke off from the line and ran towards her father. Lance caught her in his arms, as she buried her face in his neck. When she raised her head she saw Oliver and said something to her father before walking away from him.

She wrapped him in a hug, which he returned, and stepped back. "She's amazing Oliver, really. I'm happy for you. Have they told you anything?" she asked, when he mutely shook his head no she continued. "She was hurt, but it wasn't bad. I stayed with her while the medics took a look, no stitches." the sincerity in her voice surprised him, and there was no more doubt in his mind that Laurel was solidly in his past. He let out a breath at the news Felicity's injury wasn't serious.

"Thank you for staying with her. And I'm glad you're ok. I just..." his eyes kept roaming the crowd, hoping to catch sight of Felicity. "I just want to see her."

Laurel's hand stroked his arm and gave it a squeeze. "I'm sure it won't be much longer. She had to give a longer debriefing." She was about to say something else when her father's called her name. "We should still have that coffee, Ollie." she said, before she returned the way she'd come.

He watched her for a moment, and then turned his attention to the tent. Every second that ticked by he became more anxious. And then he saw her. She was in the back, separate from the rest. Her blonde hair shone bright and he could see her looking around, scanning the crowd behind the police barriers. Her eyes flit over Laurel and her father, still searching. Laurel must have caught her attention because he saw her give a small wave and then point in his direction.

When Felicity's gaze landed on him all he could do was stare. She gave him a half broken smile, the back of one hand coming up to press against her mouth. She stepped away from the group and crossed the near empty plaza, her stride steady as she headed straight for him.

Something welled up in his chest. Something he wasn't sure he'd ever felt before. He was propelled forward, slipping underneath the tape. The closer she got, the quicker she walked until she was jogging, and then running.

He wasn't breathing. All he could see was her tear stained face as she ran straight for him. She crashed into him, his chest absorbing her momentum as her arms wrapped around his neck.

He held her so close he was afraid he'd hurt her. Her ragged breath coasted over his neck and he let his eyes slip shut and finally exhaled. She was safe.

One hand cupped the back of her head, the other wrapped securely around her back, lifting her as he stood at his full height, her toes brushing the ground as she clung to him.

"Thank you," she whispered into him so quietly he almost couldn't hear her. It hadn't been the first time he'd saved her, but this had been different.

He couldn't answer her. Words stuck in his throat as the fear of what had almost happened washed over him. He held her closer, his breath coming out faster than he'd like, his ability to control it gone for the moment.

"Are you alright? The gun went off and..." he started, unable to voice the fear he'd lived through when he'd seen the red stain spreading across her blouse.

"I'm fine. It was just a graze. It stings like hell, but that's it." she assured him, her fingers pulling through his short hair. A ragged breath left her lips, "God...I was scared. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have called, maybe I could have stayed hidden..."

He shushed her, murmuring in her ear that she wasn't at fault. He could feel her trembling, and knew the adrenaline that had been flooding her system was starting to wear off.

Then Digg was right there, a hand on each of their shoulders as he began to guide them towards the car. "There are cameras." he said gruffly and Oliver lifted his head to see they had caught the attention of the media.

"Shit," he muttered under his breath, turning Felicity so her back was towards the cameras as he wrapped his arm around her waist and helped Digg block her from view.

Her hand fisted in the front of his shirt, head tucked into his shoulder as he directed her to the car. He could feel how her body shook and her feet stumbled but there was nothing he could do for her now with everyone watching.

Digg stepped away for half a second to open the door, and then Oliver half picked her up to place her on the seat before he slid in next to her. The solid slamming of the door drowned out the calls of the media, leaving them in relative silence.

Digg's eyes cut into the rearview mirror as he pulled away. "Where to?"

The lair would have been his first choice, but he didn't want to risk anyone following them back. "Go to the house." he directed and saw Digg's stiff nod.

She was silent for the first few minutes, sinking back into the seat her eyes glazed over and not really seeing. He didn't reach for her even though he wanted to. When she came out of where ever she had been she did so with a great gasp of air, her hands shooting out to brace against the plush leather as though she felt she had been in danger of falling.

"Felicity, it's ok, you're safe." he said as soothingly as he could, hands outstretched, but not touching her.

She took a deep breath and shut her eyes tight fighting for control. When she opened them she seemed better. Her eyes cut to the window and turned to look at him, confused. "Why are we heading towards the mansion?"

"It's secure." he said, more brisk than he had intended

She gave him half a smile and covered his hand with hers, "I'm okay," she assured him, "You saved me."

He squeezed her tight, his thumb ghosting over the pulse in her wrist that thrummed too quick for his liking. He heard her soft gasp and didn't understand when she pulled her hand out from his.

"You should..you should have checked on Laurel. She...I'm okay, you know. You could just take me to my place, or work...although I guess I wouldn't be much good today. So maybe just home." her hands twisted in her lap, when he cupped her cheek in his hand her eyes flew to his in surprise.

"I need you to go back to the house, okay." the finality in his voice made her nod, not understanding, but willing to trust him.

He never stopped touching her the rest of the car ride or as they walked into the house. Her hand in his, helping her out of the car, his fingers skimming over her lower back as they walked up the steps. He made sure he had some sort of contact. He knew she was confused, but he needed the reminder she was warm, and alive next to him.

He directed her towards the smaller sitting room and asked Raisa to bring some water and an ice pack. Felicity sunk into the sofa immediately, her eyes widening in surprise when he sat next to her instead of in the chair across from her.

The stained blouse caught his attention and he found he couldn't stop staring at it, his thoughts going to what could have happened if the bullet had been just centimeters off.

"Hey," she said softly, using a finger to tip his chin upwards, "It's okay."

His fingers caught hers, not letting go as he brought them down between them. "Oliver..." she began, but was interrupted by Raisa setting a tray down on the table in front of them. He smiled his thanks and picked up the ice pack.

There was a mark across her left cheek. It made him angry every time he looked at it. "I'm not sorry." he said tersely, and she knew exactly what he meant.

"I know." she whispered in reply.

As he held the ice pack to her cheek he couldn't help how his thumb coasted over her jaw, feeling how her pulse increased at his touch. Desire and need shot through him, threatening to take over.

It must have shown his face. She paled, and moved backwards, his hand falling. "Why are you looking at me like that?" she said hoarsely,

"Almost losing you made me see things differently." he admitted, stiltedly.

Her eyes narrowed, not believing him. "Why now though? I've been here the entire time. Same me, same Felicity. And I've been in danger before." he could see the confusion in her eyes, the hope mixed with the certainty that this couldn't possibly be happening. She rose to her feet and took several steps from the couch."You can't play with me like this, Oliver. You can't mess up what we have, because even though it may not be what I want, it's enough. I can live with it." her arms were wrapped around her middle, one hand covering her wound unconsciously.

He started towards her but she held a hand up to stop him. "I'm going to have Digg give me a ride home. I'll see you...just...I have to go." she said sadly, and turned to leave.

His hand caught her upper arm, pulling her back towards him. They came together, two fluid movements, his head dipping at exactly the right moment to capture her lips unexpectedly.

She stiffened when they made contact, until one of his hands delved into her hair and his tongue swept across her bottom lip.

When she gave in it was total. Her body molded to his, hands wrapping around his back, never stopping, making him growl low in his throat at the sensations. She kissed him back with equal fervor, not backing down. Her teeth scraped across his lip and any control he thought he had disappeared.

Her gasps filled the room as he hauled her in closer, hitching her up his body until her legs wrapped around his waist.

He was three steps up the staircase before she drug her mouth from his and realized what he was doing. He didn't stop, just used the opening to introduce himself to her neck, licking and sucking the soft skin, learning what made her mewl.

"Oliver!" she said desperately, pushing back some so she could see him.

"I'm not playing." his voice was lower than he'd ever heard it. Not the rough growl of Green Arrow, but something else entirely, and by the way her eyes darkened it had been appreciated.

"You'd better not be." she replied, her voice lower than usual as well.

He took that as an invitation to resume what he had been doing and caught her mouth again. "Don't plan on losing you, Smoak, get used to it." he mumbled against her lips.

By the time they reached his room she had his shirt half way up his back, her nails trailing lines of fire across his skin. He put one knee on the bed and let her slide down, taking a moment to look at her, hair spread out around her, pupils wide, looking up at him with nothing but desire in her eyes.

Her hands tugged his shirt over his head. She bit down on her lip as she eyed him appreciatively, not hesitating to touch him where ever she wanted.

He found her collarbone, giving a dark chuckle as she let out a noise between a squeal and a moan when he hit a certain spot. The buttons on her shirt were undone quickly. When he trailed a hand down between her breasts and across her abdomen she arched up, moaning.

There was a square gauze patch taped across her side and he went still, as his hands hovered over the area.

When she realized he wasn't moving her eyes flew open. The room was silent except their breathing. She pushed herself up on one elbow, her other hand coming up to trace over his face.

He couldn't seem to stop looking at it though. As much as he wanted to look away he couldn't.

Her hand entered his field of vision and gently pulled the tape back until he could see it.

It was only a few inches long and looked more like a burn than anything else, but he knew how close it had been.

The hands that had become frozen now moved. His fingers traced around the path the bullet had taken, barely noticing how her skin developed gooseflesh, or how she twitched beneath his touch.

"Too close." he said quietly, feeling her hand stroking over his head.

He carefully replaced the tape and lowered himself onto the bed, before he pulled her to him. "I can't lose you." he whispered into her hair. "You're the only one. The only one I don't have to hide from."

She clung to him, her hands never still. "I've always seen the real you, Oliver. Always."

Her hands found his face, forcing him to look at her. "I'm not going anywhere." she vowed.

As he pulled her tight against his chest he breathed out deeply, letting go of years of fear, and uncertainty. Something resembling peace or contentment settled within him for the first time in so long he almost didn't recognize it. Felicity hummed happily beneath his chin, her fingers stroking patterns over his heart, not bothering to avoid the scars.


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: This is the ever popular 'strip to keep warm' trope. Hope you like it. Let me know what you think. **

"Felicity! Run!" Oliver shouted as bullets pinged over head, bouncing off of tree trunks and causing dirt to fly up when they hit the ground.

He saw the end of her pony tail whip around as she turned to bolt back the way they'd come. Panic made her clumsy and he grabbed her tight around the upper arm to jerk her to standing before she could fall.

She shrieked as one flew right by her head, throwing her arms up and trying to cover herself. The gun she held was mostly useless and practically a danger to them as it seemed she had forgotten she had it in her hand. They crashed through the undergrowth, no way to mask their whereabouts with their pursuers this close.

Digg was to their right, doing his best to return fire, but it was difficult. Oliver wanted to stop and begin shooting back himself, but he couldn't leave Felicity out in the open like that.

Oliver saw a small drop to the left that could give them some protection. He looked at Digg and pointed for him to go straight ahead and draw their fire. Digg nodded and put on a burst of speed.

The hand he had on Felicity's arm tightened. He didn't give her any warning before he suddenly pulled her with him. They dropped six feet, he wrapped an arm around her waist and held her to him as they fell, taking the brunt of her weight when they landed.

He clapped a hand over her mouth as she lay pressed atop him, breathing heavy and looking at him with fear in her eyes. He raised a finger to his lips and asked her without speaking to be quiet. She nodded once and he let her go.

She scrambled to put her back to the embankment and took the proper two handed grip on her gun. A surge of pride went though him that she hadn't shut down. She was scared to death but she was still functioning.

He had an arrow notched in seconds. 'Stay down' he mouthed and she nodded again. They could still hear gun fire, but it had gone past them. He had some hope the plan had worked.

In one quick move he stood, arrow at the ready. He scanned over the top of drop they were hiding behind but saw nothing. Felicity's startled squeak and the retort of her gun being fired next to him made him pivot in place.

The arrow found it's mark, but not before he felt a searing pain along the right side of his chest.

Felicity turned to him in horror, her weapon falling to her side.

"Stay sharp!" he ground out, ignoring the fire that flared along his ribs, and the blood he could already feel pooling beneath his jacket.

With a shaking hand she held her gun back up, but she couldn't keep her eyes from darting constantly back to his side.

"Oliver..." she began, "You've been shot."

"I'm well aware of that." he ground out, eyes still scanning the woods for more enemies.

"How are we...what..." she was starting to panic.

"We're going to rendezvous with Digg at the campsite. All the medical supplies are there. It doesn't seem that bad." he tried to keep his voice even, but when her face went from scared to skeptical in the space of a second he knew he'd failed.

She holstered her gun and had his jacket half unzipped before he knew what she was doing. Her speed surprised him. She gasped when she pushed the down filled parka aside, "This doesn't look good." she said shakily and took her gloves off with her teeth. She undid a few buttons on his flannel shirt and threaded her hand inside. He groaned when she found the wound.

"Sorry," she said with a wince. "I can't tell if it went all the way through or just across the side without undressing you and you shouldn't be half naked in this cold." she cut herself off abruptly and he could see the faint pink that crept across her cheeks.

She pulled off the black ear warmer she'd been wearing and doubled it up before shoving it into his shirt right over the bullet hole. He groaned again at the pressure."There, that should help." her mouth was drawn in a taut line as she re-buttoned his shirt and zipped the coat.

Her hands were covered in his blood and she stared at it for a long moment before she wiped them furiously on her pants.

When he heard a strangled sob catch in her throat he grabbed her wrists, "Hey, Felicity." he said and waited for her to look at him. "It'll be okay, we'll get through this."

She held his eyes and blew out a long breath. "Okay."

"Let's get moving. It's probably an hour back and it'll be dark soon." he helped her scramble up the side of the embankment as best he could and didn't decline the hand she reached down to assist him in return.

She had her gun out again as they began to move. He would have liked to have his bow raised, but he couldn't maintain that position. He'd make the shot if he had to though.

Felicity checked the GPS and pointed them in the right direction. He saw two of the men who had been after them on the ground, dead, and he assumed Digg was responsible.

There was a chance the fourth was still out there, but there was also the chance they'd passed his body and hadn't seen it.

"There could be one more." he warned Felicity,

"I know." she replied. He hadn't realized she'd seen the bodies.

They lapsed into silence. The longer they walked the slower he got until finally he had to put his bow away. Felicity approached him silently and holstered her gun. "How is it?"

He thought about lying, but she'd always been able to see through it when he did. "Getting worse."

She cast worried eyes into the sky and he followed, noticing the grey clouds that were slowly filling in. "We need to get back." she said, and pulled out the GPS.

"Three more miles. Just need to cross that river and then we'll almost be there." she tried to sound upbeat but wasn't successful.

Their hike resumed, but when they got to the river he realized they had a problem. They had originally crossed further upstream where it wasn't as wide or as fast. The river was almost twice as wide here and was running much faster. It wasn't very deep, and there were a series of rocks that made a natural bridge, but it was not something he would consider safe.

Felicity was eying it warily. "You've got this." he told her but he knew she didn't believe it.

He went first in case she needed help. Everything was going fine until about halfway over when he was struck with a wave of dizziness. Everything under his feet tilted crazily and if Felicity hadn't of grabbed his quiver he would have ended up in the river.

She gave him a hard tug to keep him on the rock he'd been on, and over balanced. Before he could react she was falling backwards into the water.

"Felicity!" he yelled and made a mad lunge for her.

She'd let out a startled scream as she'd fallen that was immediately replaced by a shocked gasp as the frigid water hit her. When her head went under panic laced through him.

Before she could get swept downstream he grabbed her by the hood of her coat and reeled her in, his bullet wound forgotten.

She was gasping for breath and shaking when he had her next to him again. Her teeth were already chattering as she coughed and sputtered out the lungful of river water she'd ingested.

He just held her tight for a long moment until she could take a somewhat deep breath. The tips of her hair were already starting to freeze in the cold. He had to get her back to the tent as quickly as possible or she might not make it.

Refusing to think like that he didn't say a word, just grabbed her by the wrist and began guiding her across the rest of the rocks.

His pace didn't slow when they reached the other side. She stumbled and shook, but it was her silence that worried him the most. She was probably well aware of what hypothermia could do and knew as well as he did the trouble she was in.

Her steps became slower and slower, her eyelids half drawn, she only shivered occasionally and he knew that was bad. He drew her to his good side, one arm wrapped around her shoulders, she leaned into him heavily and his knees almost buckled.

His condition hadn't improved any. If anything it had gotten worse. He knew he was leaving a trail of blood behind them, but he couldn't waste the time covering their tracks. His sole focus was on getting Felicity back to the tent.

When she went to her knees he almost fell on top of her. "Felicity!" he said raggedly, dropping down next to her. She began to tip over and he took her by the shoulders, hauling her up so he could see her face. He'd never seen her so pale, she tried to open her eyes but couldn't.

His hand cupped her cheek and she barely responded. "Hey, wake up." he ordered, but there was only the smallest of flutters from her lashes.

There was no time to waste. With an inhuman roar he place her over his left shoulder and stood. The world spun for a second, but he kept his feet planted, and ignored how his other side screamed in agony.

Get her to the tent. It was the only thing going through his mind as he put one foot in front of the other. He hated carrying her like that, but it was his only option. Not being able to see her face and keep an eye on her breathing made him go as quickly as possible.

When the tent finally appeared before him he couldn't even let out a breath of relief. It was taking everything he had to keep walking. Digg patrolled the area but Oliver wasn't able to call out.

"Shit, what happened?" Digg asked as he saw them and rushed forward, taking Felicity's limp body into his arms.

"I got shot by the last man, she fell into the river." Oliver only just managed to say, his breaths dragging through his lungs like shards of glass.

It was a testament to his restraint that all Digg said was,"Get inside."

The tent was marginally warmer. Oliver collapsed over to the side, leaving room for Digg to lay Felicity down.

"When did she lose consciousness?" he asked sharply as he began to unzip her sodden coat.

Oliver shook his head slowly, "Don't know. I lost track of time." With effort he got his own coat off, wincing as he peeled it off his right arm.

Digg shot a look in his direction, his eyes taking in the amount of blood that stained his shirt and pant leg. "You're not doing good, man."

"I know." Oliver replied, swallowing heavily, his fingers barely responding as he tried to undo the buttons of his shirt. "Get her taken care of." He couldn't keep his eyes off of Felicity's pale face. The blue tinge around her lips frightened him more than he cared to admit. "Is she breathing, I couldn't..." his heart thrummed in his chest as he waited for the answer.

"She's breathing, but it doesn't sound good." Digg replied, he had her boots, and her snow pants off, leaving her in a pair of thermals and a fleece pullover that had water dripping off of it.

Oliver heard him mutter something under his breath as he shifted their packs to the side and unrolled all three sleeping bags. He zipped two of them together before he turned his attention back to Felicity.

The fleece jacket Digg tossed to the side, quickly followed by the thermals. A flare of something he didn't want to address right then went through Oliver as he saw Felicity's bare skin being handled by Digg as he placed her inside the sleeping bag. He zipped it up to her neck and tugged a knit cap over her head before he turned back to Oliver.

Whatever Oliver had felt must have still been plastered all over his face. "Don't shoot me, it had to be done." Digg said.

Oliver's jaw clenched and then he relaxed, "Is she going to be okay?"

Digg's eyes dropped for a second and panic gripped Oliver's stomach, "If she can get warm. There's nothing else I can do for her now."

Oliver was silent while Digg treated his wound. "Bullet's not in there, but it went all the way through. You're still bleeding. Needs to be stitched but I can't do that now." he said and pressed around the area making Oliver's stomach roll. "Ribs in one piece?" he asked as he taped a bandage in place.

"I don't think so." Oliver said through gritted teeth, trying not to get sick.

"You've lost a lot of blood. You're not going to be able to walk out of here, like that. Especially with her." Digg sent a look Felicity's direction and Oliver nodded his agreement, he was in no condition to hike a day over rough terrain.

Digg checked his gun and grabbed his heavy coat before leveling Oliver with a look. "Get in." he said seriously, and cut his eyes to the sleeping bag that contained Felicity.

Oliver looked at him blankly.

"Get in. She needs your body heat. It's the best way to warm her up." he said again as he put a few supplies in the smaller pack.

Oliver didn't think about how she'd probably kill him if she knew what he was doing. As he pulled back the edge Digg gave him half a smile. "Lose the pants too."

With a shake of his head he toed off his boots and skimmed out of his snow pants and thermals, leaving him in nothing but boxers. As he slid in next to her he gave Digg a glare. "I'm telling her this is your fault."

His head was already swimming from the loss of blood, and the idea of being so close to a mostly naked Felicity was not helping.

Her shallow breaths worried him, and he didn't think as he banded an arm around her waist and pulled her into him.

He sucked air between his teeth when her frozen skin touched him. A wave of pain washed over him and he bent his head down trying to get on top of it.

"Alright?" Digg asked, concerned.

Oliver just nodded, still unable to speak.

"If I double-time I can make it to the ranger station in a few hours, but there's a storm about to hit. They won't be able to get a chopper in until daybreak, you'll have to make it until then." Digg said solemnly

"We'll make it." Oliver said in as strong a voice as he could muster, pulling Felicity closer as he did. He couldn't allow himself to think about losing her.

"Good luck." Digg said, looking at them once more before he turned to leave.

"Good luck." Oliver returned, hoping he made it to the station before the storm began.

Digg had left her in her bra and underwear. Apparently not even risk of death could get him to cross that line, but the material was wet and cold against his chest, and Oliver knew it would never dry in these conditions.

Trying not to think about what he was doing he undid the clasp at her back and peeled the straps off her shoulders before tossing the garment outside the sleeping bag. Felicity didn't stir.

Oliver turned her slightly so her entire back was pressed into his chest, his body molded around hers from behind. He made sure to keep his arm low, around her waist, even though it was uncomfortable for him. Her feet were like blocks of ice and he folded her legs up further so he could tuck her feet between his legs.

His eyes were growing heavy. He tried to fight it, but his body had taken too much trauma. Hoping he was doing enough for her he rested his head on her bare shoulder and lost consciousness.

Waking up to warm female flesh beneath his hands because a naked women was sprawled across his chest was not new to him. Which is why it took a few long moments of lazily tracing his fingers over hip bones and across soft expanses of skin before the howling winds and cold temperature finally registered with him.

Felicity. River. Hypothermia. Gunshot.

It came back in a rush, along with a sudden awareness of the pain that burned across his ribs and how horrible he still felt.

The storm was raging outside, he could see the sides of the tent rippling and he hoped Digg made it to the ranger station safely.

It took his sluggish brain a few minutes to realize Felicity had turned at some point and was now pressed up against his chest, her head under his chin. She was shivering, which he took as a good sign. One of his hands was wrapped around her back and lay across her stomach, the other rested along her lower back.

He also remembered that he'd removed her bra earlier, which meant there was nothing separating them as she lay against his chest.

A warmth filled him and his fingers flexed of their own accord. He caught the hand on her stomach slowly tracing a line to her hip bone and back, when he felt the edge of her underwear he stilled.

Desire and want flowed through him despite his injury. His fingers twitched again and it took all his effort to keep them still.

He'd grown closer to Felicity since his return. She'd let him have his space until it had been time to come back, and then she'd tracked him down half way around the world and brought him home. He'd always suspected she could have found him at any moment, but had let him be.

He'd tried to stay detached when he got back. Felicity wouldn't allow it. One tense night in the lair she'd exploded at him. She got right in face, the tip of her brightly painted nail digging into his chest with every point she made. She told him she'd found him once, a broken shell of a man, and put him back together, and she'd do it again as many times as it took, but she would not let him cut himself off from everyone around him.

The memory of her standing before him, cheeks flushed, worried she'd gone too far, but too headstrong to show it, flashed through his mind. He'd almost kissed her right then. The air was charged around them, and despite everything she'd said to him all he could think about was how nice it would be to kiss her.

Things had been different since then. He'd begun to find his purpose again, a real one, that wasn't driven by guilt or revenge. And she was always there. Every time he looked up she was by his side or in his ear.

Laurel had grown further away from him. Tommy's death hung over them, and her new work for the DA pitted her against Green Arrow. Whenever they saw each other now there was a palpable tension that didn't abate until one of them left.

But Felicity was always there. She may not have known him before the island, but she knew him then, and it was becoming clearer with every passing day that having someone in his life who knew every part of him and who he didn't need to hide from was important.

She stirred slightly, muttering something he couldn't make out. He looked down as best he could, grimacing against the pull of his wound. Her brow was furrowed and he couldn't tell if she was in pain or having a bad dream.

He slid his hand around to her back and ran it up and down, hoping to give her some comfort. She pushed closer into him, making the breath catch in his throat, but the tension in her face eased some.

As if by it's own volition his hand pulled the hair away from her neck, combing through tangles until it lay smooth. She was asleep again. Tentatively he brushed his lips over her forehead and found her to be cool but not cold. Her shivering had lessened he noted, relieved that she seemed to be coming out of her ordeal in one piece.

He fell back into a light sleep, waking occasionally to check on her.

When he hear her calling his name his eyes opened immediately. She was upset, her breath coming in short pants as she made sounds of distress. She called his name again and he shushed her, hands coasting over her arms and back, letting her know he was there.

She came to with a gasp, looking around frantically. He could feel her wild pulse as he ran his hand over her neck and across her shoulder.

"Hey, you're okay." he told her. She turned her head and looked up at him.

She opened her mouth to speak but was overcome by a coughing fit. He waited her out, trying not to wince as she shook his body.

"Oliver," she finally managed to get out, "I'm cold." she said as she unconsciously cuddled closer to him. "What happened?" she still sounded groggy.

"You fell in the river." he reminded her.

Her head nodded once and she shuddered, "I remember that. What happened after that?"

"We got back to the tent. Digg fixed us up and went for help." he told her, leaving out the part where he barely got them back in time.

"Oh god!" she exclaimed, suddenly aware, and pushed herself up to get a look at his wound, remembering what had happened to him. "Are you okay? Is the bullet still in there? Where's Digg? You look pale, you lost a lot of blood." she said it all in a rush, while her fingers ran along the edge of the bandage.

When she'd raised herself up he'd thrown his head back and looked very purposely at the top of the tent. She had yet to realize her state of undress.

Cool air flowed between them and he clenched his hands into fists as he waited for her to notice. The temptation to look was becoming too great.

When her hand skimmed across his chest again he clamped a hand over it and held her still. "Felicity, you need to lay back down, right now." he said between gritted teeth.

He could feel her eyes on him, but he refused to look down. He didn't know what would happen if he did.

When she let out an 'eep' and collapsed onto him he couldn't stop the grunt of pain that escaped his lips.

"Sorry!" she said quickly, and he could actually hear her gulp. "Am I naked?"

"Well, you have a hat on." he said, and finally lowered his head just in time to see her eyes flash from embarrassment to a glare.

"Why?" was all she asked as she shifted to pull her arms in closer to her side. Her left knee moved as well and everything stilled. How had he not noticed where her knee was before then.

She was frozen. Every muscle was tensed and he was sure if he listened he could hear her heart where it beat against his.

He decided the safest course of action was to just answer her question. "You were shutting down. Body heat was the only way to warm you up fast enough." he explained, his voice deeper than he meant it to be.

She licked her lips and moved to speak but didn't. Their gazes locked, and the temperature of the tent seemed to raise as there was a shift between them. An understanding passed as everything they'd both been fighting against dissolved.

What he saw when he looked at her gave him courage to do what he hadn't been able to do that day in the lair.

His fingers trailed over her cheekbone and her eyes fell shut for a long moment. She opened them and gave him a small smile.

"I don't want to mess this up." he admitted, unable to stop touching her. His hand pushed hair behind her ear and cupped the back of her neck.

Her smile grew until it spanned her entire face. "That's why you won't." she told him with a whisper as she moved closer.

He suppressed a groan as he felt her body drag across his. The slightly devious glint he saw in her eyes let him know she had done it on purpose.

His control was becoming very thin, very quickly and when he dropped his hand to her lower back, letting his fingers dip under the waistband of her underwear she was very aware.

Her breath hitched, the hand she'd raised paused before continuing on it's mission. When he felt her fingers trail across his jaw he turned his head into her. She brushed her thumb over his bottom lip and everything stopped.

Her blue eyes were now almost black. If he'd ever had any doubt that she didn't want this it had been erased.

Her lips hovered over his, their breaths mingling. Her eyes flicked to his once more and then she leaned down and barely pressed their lips together.

She did it a second time and he couldn't control his groan of frustration. His hand slid into her hair and pulled the hat off her head so he could hold her the way he wanted. When she leaned in again he opened beneath her. She sighed into him and didn't pull back.

Her lips moved over his with purpose, and when he swept his tongue past she didn't resist. She moaned, low in her throat and returned the kiss with equal fervor.

When she raked her nails over his abdomen he let out a growl and tried to turn into her, but the pain from his side let him know he couldn't. He was at her mercy as she leaned over him, and had the advantage with two working arms which she put to good use.

She tore her mouth from his and made her way across his jaw. Her lips on his neck made him wish he could flip her beneath him. A noise rumbled from his chest as she nipped and sucked the line of his collar bone and he could feel her smile into him.

He tugged her arm and pulled her back to him, cupping her face as she gazed down at him. When their mouths met again he controlled it. He took his time, learning what she liked and what made her moan. He could feel her toes curl into his leg and he did it again.

He never heard the winds die down, or the chopper land. When Digg unzipped the front of the tent and stuck his head in it took him saying their names twice before Felicity's head popped up and looked his direction.

"Your ride's here, if you're not too busy." he said with barely concealed disdain.

Felicity flushed red and dipped beneath the sleeping bag. Oliver couldn't help but laugh.

Digg leveled him with a look that let Oliver know if he screwed this up Digg wouldn't be held responsible for his actions. Oliver just gave him a nod of understanding.

When Digg had stepped back out Felicity re-emerged. He didn't give her a chance to start rambling, he just kissed her again. She melted against him, her hands roaming over his chest, not avoiding his scars.

Digg had to interrupt two more times. The last time he threatened to leave them there.


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: This is the 'handcuffed together' trope. :)**

**Enjoy, and let me know what you think!**

The black SUVs had come out of nowhere. One minute she was in the back of the car with Oliver as Digg drove them to the office after lunch, and the next they'd been hit hard and boxed in with no way out.

Felicity had screamed with the first impact, the seat belt cutting across her and holding her in place but not stopping her head from slamming into the side window. Oliver tried to reach for her but was held back by his own restraint.

She blinked open blurry eyes to see the front airbags had deployed and there was a moment of silence before all the windows began to shatter, one after the other.

She screamed again as she tried to cover her head from the falling glass. Oliver undid his belt and then hers and pulled her to the floorboard, laying over top her to protect her as well as he could.

His hands were holding her down, his weight heavy but not unwelcome. Her face was pressed between his chest and his arm and he was saying something but she couldn't hear him over the roaring in her head.

Then there was shouting and he lifted off of her. She looked up and fear washed through her. The car was surrounded by men in black ski masks and guns. This hadn't been an accident.

Digg was struggling to get out of his seat or reach his gun but he'd been pinned in. She watched in horror as a hand with a syringe reached through the now open window and jabbed him in the neck. The effect was immediate as he slumped to the side unmoving.

"No!" she cried and turned to Oliver who was trying to fight off the men pulling him from the vehicle. "Oliver!" Her fingertips brushed his as she reached for him.

When rough hands grabbed her legs and pulled her backwards she tried to fight them, kicking out and losing her heels, but it was no use. She was dragged out her side window, hissing as loose glass cut into her legs.

She looked up with hopeful eyes to see Oliver trying to get out of their hold. He managed to disable one of them but was immediately hit in the head with the butt of a rifle. Her heart stopped when he fell to one knee.

"No! Stop it!" she screamed, still trying to get away from her captors. She watched as they jerked Oliver to his feet and he began to struggle again. When she felt the barrel of a gun placed to her temple she froze.

"Stop fighting us, Mr. Queen." a smooth, controlled voice said and Oliver looked up to see Felicity. Horror crossed his eyes and he too stopped moving. Her lower lip trembled as she tried to retain her composure, but she was scared, and she couldn't stop a tear from escaping.

"If you come with us nicely, she won't get hurt." the voice said again. And Oliver went as slack as he could and nodded once.

"Oliver, no!" it slipped out before she could stop herself and then clamped her lips together at Oliver's look.

"Felicity, it'll be okay." his voice was strained and she knew how much he wanted to act, but with no weapon he wouldn't risk her life.

She didn't expect the pin prick she felt in her neck, or Oliver calling out her name. That was the last thing she heard as the world went black and she fell.

When Felicity began to wake up the first thing she noticed was a dull ache in her head and throughout the rest of her body and a warm presence that surrounded her. Opening her eyes seemed like too much work, so instead she turned into whatever was underneath her and tried to bring warmth to her cold nose.

"Felicity, wake up." a familiar voice said and she finally blinked open sluggish eyes to see the tie Oliver had worn to work that morning.

She'd had dreams like this before.

"It's not a dream, wake up." he said with a hint of exasperation to his tone.

Her eyes went wide when she realized she'd said that out loud and she pushed back some to see that the nice warm thing she'd been laying on was Oliver's chest.

"Oh. Oh my god. Sorry!" she said quickly and tried to sit up. She was stopped by a pounding in her skull and a tug on her arm, both which made her sink back against him.

She raised her right hand and pressed it to her head with a groan. Oliver sighed and shifted a little under her, sitting them both up.

With a jolt she remembered the car and the men with guns and Digg being injected with something.

"What happened? Where are we? Where's Digg? Is he okay?" she asked in a rush.

"We were ambushed. I don't know anything about Digg." Oliver said tightly,

Feeling overwhelmed she tried to pull away from him despite the pain in her skull, but once again she was stopped.

"Oliver, let me go!" she demanded, her breaths becoming shallow as she started to panic slightly.

"I can't." he said between what she knew were clenched teeth.

The arm he had placed around her shoulders moved just a bit and with a shock she looked down to see that they were handcuffed together. Her left hand and his right were joined by shiny silver handcuffs. He'd wrapped the arm with the cuff behind her, the wrist attached to his lay across her middle as she'd rested against him.

"Oh," she said under her breath. Moving carefully she climbed to her knees and turned around so she was no longer tucked into his side. The six inches or so between their wrists meant she had to stay close but she still shivered at the loss of his body heat.

"Can't you break out of them?" she asked, almost desperately.

"Not without hurting you." he said immediately.

"Oliver, I'm a big girl, I can take a little pain." she told him quickly, ignoring how it made her feel that he didn't want her hurt.

"Like breaking your wrist? Because that's what I'd have to do." his eyes held hers and she swallowed heavily.

"Well, maybe we can figure something else out." she said weakly and he just nodded once.

The cuff around her wrist was too tight to allow her to slip her hand out, but loose enough it fit more like a bracelet. On Oliver it looked snug. She ran her finger between the metal and his skin to see how tight it was.

"What are you doing?" he asked

"Just wanted to make sure it wasn't so tight it was going to do damage. That's the hand you use to draw your…" she trailed off at the slightly surprised look on his face.

"I'm fine." he said immediately,

"You say that but you've got a cut on your head and a pretty nasty bruise forming from where that guy hit you." her hand reached up automatically to brush over the spot but he intercepted it with his free hand and squeezed it once before he let her go.

"I'm fine." he repeated.

She dropped her eyes and for the first time looked around. With a shock she realized they had been on a bed the entire time. It wasn't anything other than a single mattress, with an industrial frame, but it was a bed. A flush crept up her chest and she hoped Oliver couldn't see.

The rest of the room was solid concrete. Concrete floors, concrete walls, concrete pillars. It was large, but other than a few casement windows over fifteen feet up there was no other light that she could see.

The bed, a small table, and incongruously enough a twenty inch flat screen t.v mounted to the wall were the only furnishings in the room. Oliver's suit jacket had been tossed over the end of the footboard almost as an afterthought.

The table held a tray with basic first aid supplies on it and she furrowed her brow at it before turning to Oliver.

"Where are we? Who did this?" she asked again, hoping he would give her a little bit more information this time.

He started to lift the hand that was cuffed to her to run across his hair in frustration but stopped mid motion, becoming even more irritated. "I don't know. I woke up in here with you. They used the same thing on us that they did on Diggle." his fist tightened so hard his knuckles were white, "The dosages were the same in all the syringes, which is why it took you so much longer to wake up."

With a glance to the high windows she realized what light was there was low, it was much later in the day than she would have guessed.

"How long?" she whispered

"Hours." he growled out, and she knew he needed to pace, needed to move, to not be stationary.

A silence passed between them and she couldn't even dwell on what those hours had been like for him.

"Where did that come from?" she finally asked, nodding towards the tray in the corner.

He let out a long sigh and swung his legs off the side of the bed, effectively putting his back to her as much as he could considering their situation.

"They've actually been accommodating." he said begrudgingly, "Three armed guards came in earlier and asked if we needed anything. You were hurt so I told them to bring me some supplies." he waved a hand dismissively.

She gulped and tried to calm her rapid heart at the news. Unconsciously she raised a hand to her tender head but only felt a lump.

"Your legs and back." he told her and she looked down, unfurling her legs so they stretched the length of the bed. There were several small bandages along her calves, and a larger one peeking out from underneath the hem of her skirt. When she raised the fabric she hissed at the sudden throb of pain that flared through her thigh.

"The glass, from the window." he said and she nodded mutely. She remembered. "That one probably needs some stitches but…"

She turned towards him, now feeling a tightness across her lower back and she wondered how he'd managed to treat that one. It took everything in her to tramp down the surge of emotion she felt when she realized it meant he'd had to have lifted her blouse.

"It's okay. You did your best. Thank you." her voice sounded a bit strangled even to her and she didn't even want to know what he thought.

Her eyes were drawn to the side of his face, and the cut that still had dried blood around it. With a sudden flare of anger she moved to sit beside him, ignoring the twinge of pain in her legs as she dropped them off the side of the bed.

"You didn't treat yourself at all, did you?" she asked, exasperated

He opened his mouth and she shut him up with a look, "Don't say you're fine."

The table was close enough that she could walk a few steps and he didn't have to get up. With her left arm stretched behind her she grabbed a gauze pad and an antiseptic wipe and leveled him with a glare when she was staring down at him again.

"Is it just you, or is there just something in the male DNA that prevents them from asking for help when they need it?" she asked, not expecting an answer as she struggled to open the small pouch without pulling on his arm. Finally he half raised it so both her hands were at the same level. "Thank you, I think we're going to have to learn to work together a little better."

He just grunted and she pretended like she hadn't heard him.

Without thinking she grasped his chin and tilted his head to the side so she could get a better look at his wound. She wiped it clean with the alcohol swab and dried it before she turned back to the table and grabbed two butterfly closures.

"There, that's done. Where else?" she said, stepping back and looking him over. Once again he tried to brush her off but she wouldn't let him.

His suit jacket would have given him protection as well as his pants, and at first glance she didn't see anything else. He gave her an annoyed sigh which she pointedly ignored since if he'd just tell her where he was hurt she wouldn't have to do this.

When his head fell forward slightly she saw several cuts and scrapes along the back of his neck, most likely from when the windows had been shattered and he'd laid on top of her.

This time she grabbed the entire tray and sat it on the bed next to him before she got to work. He didn't resist as she undid his tie and pulled it from the collar. Her fingers stilled for a second when she realized exactly what an intimate act it was.

She was just giving him medical attention. That was it. Nothing more.

She told herself that several times, but it didn't slow her pulse any.

When she slipped the top two buttons of his shirt free she thought she saw the hand without a cuff clench into a fist, but she couldn't be sure.

Spreading the collar wide she could see more shallow cuts and even some glass still laying against his skin. She reached forward and tried to pluck it off with her fingernails when he jerked slightly. Felicity froze. "Sorry, there's still glass here." she said by way of explanation.

He didn't move again, and it wasn't until she'd pulled off the last piece that she was aware of how close their faces were. She cleaned the cuts and thought about doing the buttons of his shirt back up but felt like that might be taking things too far.

After clearing her throat once she felt like she could speak. "Anywhere else? Or do I need to strip you to find out for myself?"

Slowly his head raised until his surprised eyes met hers which were round in horror.

She was babbling. She could hear herself. Her mouth was going and words were coming out and she couldn't stop it.

Oliver's eyes held hers and then he took her hands in his and said her name. He had to say it twice before she stopped.

"Sorry," she said quietly,

He didn't say a word but after he let go of her hands he leaned to the side, pulling his shirt out of his pants as he did.

There was a large gash across his ribs that was still bleeding slightly and looked painful. "Oliver!" she yelled, half in concern, half in exasperation. The shirt had been torn through, but was low enough it hadn't been that visible.

"It didn't seem that bad." he said as she dropped to her knees to get a better look. His hand was pulled across his lap and her left hand rested against his knee, but his injury took her attention and any awkwardness she felt fell away.

She felt him tense as she cleaned it as best she could. "It might need stitches, I don't know. Digg would…" tears clouded her vision as she thought of him. With shaky hands she pressed a bandage over the spot and smoothed down tape trying to keep the tears at bay.

She stood in front of him, wanting to wring her hands but unable. "Do you think he's okay? Or do you think they…" she couldn't finish the thought and her words caught on a sob.

Without a word Oliver pulled her towards him. She sank against his chest, their cuffed hands trapped between them. He banded his free arm around her back and held her tight as she released the fear she'd been trying to hide since she'd woken up.

"You can't think like that. They knocked him out, same as us, there's no reason to believe they did anything else." his words were reassuring and exactly what she needed to hear.

She pressed her face into his neck and allowed herself a few more minutes before she pulled back and gave him a watery smile. "Okay,"

With a jolt she noticed for the first time that she'd come to be sitting in his lap, she had just planted her free hand on his chest to push herself to her feet when the lone door in the room opened without warning.

Before she could blink Oliver had grabbed her cuffed hand in his and was standing, facing the door, with her held behind him. She had a fistful of shirt in her right hand and her cheek pressed to his back. Every muscle was taut and she could hear his heartbeat, elevated but steady under her.

As she stood there, petrified, she remembered she hadn't even had a chance to ask Oliver if he thought this was related to Green Arrow, or something else. They weren't working on anything specific at the moment, but ever since the Glades had fallen it seemed like Starling City had turned into some sort of magnet for the criminally insane.

"Mr. Queen, Ms. Smoak, there's no need to be worried. As long as you cooperate no one gets hurt." the same voice she'd heard earlier said and she couldn't help pressing in closer to Oliver.

She could hear feet coming towards them and Oliver was pushing her backwards. She tried to move with him and not get in the way.

"Have a good night." the man said and then the door was being shut.

Oliver only relaxed a tiny bit before he pulled her out from behind him, a trembling, crying mess.

His hand stroked over her hair until she calmed down and wiped her face with her free hand. "Sorry, I'll stop, I promise." she told him, knowing he needed her to be strong right then.

"It's okay to be scared. We have no idea why we're here or what we're dealing with."

She took a deep breath and then blew it out, feeling her panic ease some as she did. "I just...what is this about? This was planned, obviously, but why? Do you think this is about your...nighttime activities?" she said softly, in case the room was bugged.

He gave her a look and cast his eyes about the room before he turned back towards her. "I don't know. I don't think so, they haven't said or done anything that makes me thing that. But you're right, it was planned."

"Then why are they keeping us cuffed together? I mean, if they knew about...well then I could understand because you could do your ninja thing and I'd be in my pajamas by now instead of here, handcuffed to you."

"I don't know why, but with this I can't do anything." he bit out, shaking his arm slightly and causing the metal to clink together.

She felt almost guilty in some strange way, as if she was keeping him from freeing them even though the situation was out of her control. Looking away she spotted a tray and a folded blanket laying at the foot of the bed.

"They brought food?"

"Yes, and we're not touching it." he told her.

Of course her stomach chose that moment to growl. "Why? You said they've been accommodating."

"Exactly. I don't trust them. Just...you have to listen to me." there was an edge to his voice that she didn't quite understand.

"Did something like this happen on the island?" she asked quietly, wincing when he startled slightly.

"Yeah, something like that." was all she got from him after a long pause.

Carefully they moved the tray to the floor by the door. Felicity was tempted to see what was under the cover, but she resisted; it would be better off not knowing.

"I know you must be going crazy." she blurted out as they sank down on the edge of the bed. "You're in constant motion, what with the training and the...well, you know, and work all day. I mean, I'm pretty happy sitting in my desk chair, staring at my screens so this really isn't so bad, and you're here so…"

Her cuffed hand was fiddling with the hem of her skirt, as she tried to dispel some of her nervous energy. She wasn't going to get upset again. Oliver needed her to keep her head and help him, not be even more of a liability.

When his hand entered her field of vision and enclosed hers, putting a halt to her absent minded worrying, her breath hitched.

"I'm okay, Felicity. Right now the best thing we can do is stay safe and observe everything we can about them."

She nodded. That made sense.

"Someone has to be looking for us, right? I mean, that accident was not subtle, it would have been noticed almost immediately. And Digg...Digg must be awake by now so he can help." she'd had to swallow hard past the the lump in her throat as she thought about him again.

Oliver's thumb ran over her knuckles. "Yes to all of that. And they'll make a mistake, don't worry."

"Yeah," she said on an exhale gripping his fingers tighter.

"It's getting dark." she observed, glancing at the faint light that was coming through the windows. Already the far corners of the room were almost black. "And there's no light in here." she looked around unnecessarily.

"We'll be okay. Maybe you should just try and sleep." he suggested.

"How am I supposed to do that?" she asked, turning to eye the narrow bed behind them.

"I made it work earlier." he reminded her and she flushed.

Her head was throbbing again, and her back hurt as well as her neck from the accident. Sleep wouldn't be a bad thing, and if her eyes were closed she could pretend she wasn't being held captive in a dank, dark basement.

"Okay," she agreed and pulled her legs up onto the mattress.

Oliver shifted with her, settling against the metal frame headboard. "That doesn't look very comfortable." she said.

"I've slept on worse." his tone wasn't harsh, but she could hear the tension in it.

"Okay, how are we going to do this?" she asked nervously.

He lifted his arm slightly and she realized he was suggesting she lay against him again. Tramping down thoughts one should not have when one was handcuffed to their boss she cleared her throat and adjusted her glasses. "Are you sure?"

He just gave her a look, "Felicity…" he half growled, which did nothing for how her stomach was flipping.

"Right," she said with a tight lipped smile.

Oliver raised his arm and she ducked under it, hesitating slightly before she sighed and laid her head gingerly on his chest. His hand rested across her waist and she tried to suppress the shiver that went through her where his fingers brushed her exposed skin. Her blouse had ridden up some and she didn't know how to pull it back down without drawing attention to it.

She felt his abs flex underneath her hand as he sat up suddenly and snatched the blanket from the foot of the bed, along with his suit jacket. He must have taken her shiver for her being cold, which she was, except for where his palm rested. That part of her was very, very warm.

Felicity helped him spread out the blanket, wrinkling her nose at the slightly musty smell. She tried to keep the edge of it down some and turned her face further into Oliver to escape it. He stilled for a moment and then she felt movement above her again.

There was a much nicer quality fabric around her shoulder now, and when she took a deep breath she realized it was his jacket.

"Thank you," she mumbled into him.

"Just get some rest," he replied, his hand flexing slightly at her waist before it was quiet.

She laid there for a long time with her eyes open, staring blankly as her mind spun. When it was completely dark she finally let her lids fall shut.

A loud blaring noise and bright light startled her out of a surprisingly sound sleep. She only had a split second to try and comprehend what was happening before Oliver wrenched his arm from around her and she found herself under him as he blindly protected her from what was happening.

Her face was tight against his shirt, as she lay frozen beneath him, ignoring the throb in her wrist from where it had been pulled so forcefully.

"It's okay," he said suddenly, mouth close to her ear. "They're just trying to mess with us."

He sat up slowly and she was surprised to see his eyes were wide and slightly wild. She wondered if he'd actually been sleeping.

The noise and light were coming from the t.v on the wall. Oliver pulled her up next to him and they took in the sight.

The channel was tuned to a 24 hour news station. Oliver's name and face were everywhere. Running across the ticker, on a clock that showed how long it had been since the abduction, in a separate box as the news anchor gave an update.

They sat staring at the spectacle, Felicity's mouth open in shock. The graphics changed and there was live footage outside Queen Consolidated's headquarters, as well as a shot from the gates of the Queen mansion.

She'd mostly blocked out what was being said until a new reporter began speaking.

'If you're just now joining us live it has been approximately fourteen hours since the violent abduction of billionaire Oliver Queen. Starling City Police have stated Queen's chauffeured car was the victim of a strategic hit shortly after two yesterday. Mr. Queen's driver was incapacitated during the attack and the billionaire was taken by a group of men in dark clothes. If anyone has any information they are encouraged to call SCPD immediately. So far no contact has been made by whoever has Mr. Queen. All calls to the company and the Queen family home have gone unanswered. A Queen Consolidated employee was also taken along with Mr. Queen."

Felicity felt Oliver go tense beside her and she had to stop herself from feeling angry at being reduced to merely a 'Queen Consolidated employee'.

She could feel him bristle and she laid her hand on his. "It's okay, Oliver."

"No, it's not." he replied through clenched teeth. "They shouldn't ignore-"

But he was cut off as she suddenly gasped and pointed at the screen. It was Digg, walking out of Starling Memorial with a bandage on his head and Lance at his side.

"Digg's okay!" she exclaimed, leaning into Oliver some as she watched the film greedily, protesting when they went to a shot of the building instead.

Oliver's hand flexed under hers and she felt him relax some at the knowledge that their partner was whole and alive. "Good." was all he said, but it was more than enough.

The next shot they showed was a scene from the accident. Felicity unconsciously drew her legs under her and pressed closer to Oliver as they looked at the car that was almost unrecognizable. When the camera zoomed in on one of her lost heels she had to take a deep steadying breath. Oliver's hand covered her knee and squeezed before he reached across her lap and held up the jacket where it had fallen.

"Here," he said, holding it open so she could slip her arm in. She gave him a smile of thanks as he draped it over her other shoulder.

There was talk of a press conference in a few hours time and a possible FBI task force which just had Oliver shaking his head. When the screen cut away from the news desk and went to a recording of the day's weather they sat in silence.

The bright graphics showing the weather for Coast City seemed garish and out of place and the horrible music being played did nothing to help her feel any better about their situation.

With a jolt she sat up straight, right hand gripping the edge of the mattress. She watched the screen without blinking and she knew Oliver was staring at her. When the forecast switched to Starling City she turned to him eagerly.

Leaning in so only he could hear she whispered excitedly. "They messed up! We're in Coast City. We were moved! The first forecast always shown is the local one. It didn't show Starling City first, it showed Coast City!"

As soon as she'd relayed her discovery however, she deflated. "Although, I have no idea how that's helpful." she said dejectedly.

"It's helpful." he told her, thumb ghosting over her knee, which only made her skin tingle. "We also know the exact time and what's going on outside of here. They've given us a lot of information without realizing it."

The t.v cut off abruptly, leaving them once again in pitch darkness. She wondered if they'd realized their mistake.

"Why do you think they showed us that?" she asked, her voice sounding all too loud in the now quiet room.

Oliver pushed himself back on the bed and she had no choice but to go with him. This time when his arm lifted she didn't hesitate. He settled the blanket over her again and her head found it's spot just under his shoulder. For someone who was practically all muscle he was surprisingly comfortable.

"I don't know why they showed it to us. But they're probably just trying to keep us confused. Don't be surprised if they do it again. The loud noises and sudden bright lights are a way to frighted and disorient prisoners."

She swallowed hard and nodded. At least if it happened a second time she'd be prepared.

Her good hand rubbed distractedly over her sore wrist until Oliver's fingers tangled with hers. "What's wrong?"

"Oh, nothing. It's fine." she assured him.

"Felicity," he said warningly, and she sighed.

"Fine. When you jumped up my arm got torqued, that's all." she trailed off as she felt his fingers follow the line of the cuff and rub the tender skin underneath.

Her breath caught in her throat as fiery trails shot wherever he touched. "I'm okay," she managed to get out, voice more strangled than she would have liked. His hand slipped away and she could breathe again.

"Go back to sleep." he said gruffly but she ignored it.

"Do you think they know where we are?" she asked quietly.

Oliver didn't answer for a long while. When he did his words were joined by a soft hand brushing over her hair. "Go back to sleep." he repeated.

She opened her mouth to reply, but changed her mind. She fell asleep to his hand softly stroking her head.

Her rest was anything but easy. She woke up often, blinking into the inky blackness, only the solid warmth of Oliver beneath her giving her anything to anchor herself to. He was always awake and she knew he was sitting guard.

Which was why when she heard him calling her name and shaking her gently she was confused. She burrowed closer to him and curled her fingers into his shirt.

"Felicity, you have to wake up." his voice was strained and had a vein of fear running through it that registered with her in an instant. Her eyes flew open and she could now feel how stiff he was holding himself.

When she pulled back slightly so she could see his face she felt the unmistakable sensation of a muzzle being held to her head.

"Oh god." she blurted out. She saw him raise blazing eyes to whoever was behind her.

"Move very slowly Ms. Smoak and no one gets hurt." the voice from before came around the end of the bed and was training a gun on Oliver. Movement from the corner of her eye let her know there were at least three armed guards in the room with them.

Oliver helped her sit up and even though she had told herself she was going to be strong she couldn't seem to stop shaking. His hands clasped with hers and squeezed tight.

"We're going to undo those handcuffs, and both of you are going to sit nice and still while we do or Ms. Smoak gets her pretty blonde head blown off." the man motioned to the one at the end of the bed who approached quickly.

Her eyes flew to Oliver's and she could see the battle raging within him. He wanted to fight, he wanted to end this, but he wasn't going to do it with a gun to her head.

The link between the cuffs was jerked up harshly and she couldn't suppress the whimper that left her lips. "Watch it." Oliver growled, and the gun was shoved harder into her head.

As soon as the cuff fell away from her wrist she was pulled forcefully off the bed and away from Oliver.

"No!" she cried out and reached for him but she was already being towed towards the door by a hard hand around her upper arm.

"Where are you taking her?!" Oliver bellowed, on his feet, seemingly ignoring the two guns pointed at him, but his eyes never left hers.

"I've decided to keep Ms. Smoak in another location. As long as you cooperate fully nothing will happen to her." the man replied smoothly,

"If you hurt her, I will-" he began in the most threatening voice she'd ever heard him use.

"You'll what, Mr. Queen?" their captor said with a sharp laugh, "She'd be dead before you left this room."

The words hung between them and she could no longer hold back the tears, "Oliver," she said with a wavery voice, "It's okay." she wanted him to know if he had the opportunity to get out he should take it.

He gave her a fierce shake of his head. "Felicity, everything will be fine." she could see how hard he was trying to keep himself calm for her and it made something swell in her chest.

The hand on her arm pulled her again and she was tugged through the door. She turned her head one last time and caught his eyes as the door closed between them.

The floor under her feet was cold and rough as she was dragged down hallway after hallway. She tried to pay attention, tried to remember how many turns it had been since they'd left the other room, but everything looked the same and there were no marks on the doors.

She wasn't expecting it when the man stopped cold, turned the handle of a door, and pushed her inside. Felicity stumbled into the darkness and spun when she had her balance but the door had already been shut and locked behind her.

One lone bulb flickered overhead as she looked around the space. This room was much smaller than the one she'd just been in. Maybe ten foot square it very much reminded her of a prison cell. There was a dingy mattress in one corner and a small door that gave her a surge of hope as she ran for it and it opened for her.

That hope was short lived. There was a toilet inside and nothing more. She figured she should be grateful for that meager amenity and used it quickly in case she was denied the chance later. While in the small closet she realized she still had Oliver's jacket hanging off of one arm.

When she walked out she slid it on completely and wrapped it about her as best she could. It wasn't the same as being in his arms but it would do. Not feeling any shame she buried her nose in the collar and breathed deep. Tears pricked her eyes again and she brushed them away. Crying wasn't going to help.

There were no windows in this room, so she wouldn't be able to tell what time of day it was, nor was there a t.v. She pressed her heels to her eyes as she tried to remember if there had been light when she'd been woken up. Try as she might she couldn't remember. She'd looked at Oliver and that was it.

They'd been woken up around two a.m by the new broadcast. And even though she couldn't remember there being light coming through the windows it definitely wasn't full day out. She had to assume it was early morning, probably around daybreak, which she randomly remembered was at 6:32 thanks to the forecast she'd watched.

Unbeknownst to her she'd begun to pace a path between the door and the bathroom. She was on her tenth pass and trying not to let panic consumer her when the small amount of light she had went out.

With her heart lodged in her throat she slowly inched her way to where she thought the mattress should be. When her toes brushed the edge she sank down gratefully and crawled to the back corner.

Oliver had told her they might do this; use the light against her. She could handle it. She could beat it.

She didn't know how long she sat there, pressed into the cold concrete in the solid darkness. Her eyes were drooping when there was a sharp rap on the door. A voice told her not to move from where she was and in the faint light from the hallway she saw a tray being pushed inside. As soon as the door was shut and locked again, full blazing lights from overhead lit up the space.

She gasped at the sudden brightness and hid her eyes in her hands. It took several minutes before she could squint open her eyes and gradually look up. The lights were abnormally strong, drowning the small room with such a force it made everything look white.

Oliver's words came back to her and she ignored the tray even though she could smell something and her stomach rumbled. Lunch from the day before was a long time off now.

The only thing she could think to do was wait. Purposely turning her back on the tray she curled into a ball and pulled the coat tight around her, tucking her head down so she couldn't see the brightness of the light behind her lids.

It took her a long time to relax enough to fall asleep. Her thoughts kept turning to Oliver and what was being done to him. She'd only just managed to doze off when the lights suddenly went out. She lifted her head, still seeing white spots before her eyes even though they'd been shut.

Felicity stretched her legs out in front of her and winced at the ache in her thigh and the pull across her back. Her head was also not responding well to the lack of food or water in addition to the bump she'd received.

When the noises began she startled. At first she wasn't sure she was even hearing anything it was so faint. As it gradually got louder it sounded like metal grating, a noise she recognized all too well from when the Glades fell. The noise grew steadily until her ears began to ring and she clamped her hands over her ears. It felt like it was everywhere. In her head, in her mouth, in her veins. It seemed to vibrate through her and all she could do is tuck her head into her bent knees and wait.

Memories of the earthquake overtook her. As much as she tried to ignore it and tell herself she wasn't there she couldn't stop it. She found herself stuck in an endless loop, as memories of that night crashed through her over and over again. Except it wasn't just what she remembered, it was all the nightmares she'd had after. Not getting out in time. The building collapsing on top of her, burying her alive. Oliver dying trying to save her. Each one grew worse and worse until she had to scream to make them stop.

Her throat was raw when the noise suddenly cut off. She could still hear it in her head though. The screeching and scraping wouldn't stop even though it was no longer deafening.

She clasped her hands in front of her in a weak attempt the stop them from shaking but she was unsuccessful.

The low bulb over the door turned on and she could now see there were now two trays by the door. She hadn't even heard them bring in the second. Did that mean it had been five or six hours since they'd brought the last, or were they bringing them at different time so she'd remain disoriented?

She shook her head slowly and climbed to her feet, muscles protesting as she stood after being in one position for so long. Her thigh ached fiercely when she stepped on her right leg and she limped her way to the bathroom.

Her lips were parched, and her mouth dry from screaming. By her best guess it had been almost twenty-four hours since they'd been taken, maybe less, she didn't know how long she'd been in the room but it had felt like hours. She eyed the tray but resisted.

With a groan she settled on the mattress and immediately tried to get some rest. There were no noises and only the one light, she wasn't going to waste her opportunity.

They left her alone long enough for her to fall asleep then the lights were back. She came to with her limbs flailing as she covered her eyes. She tugged the jacket over her head and the brightness was gone. But something told her she would get no reprieve.

She was allowed peace for what she guessed was almost an hour when the noises sounded again. A long guttural 'Noooooo' was dragged from her lips when it began. The jacket was clamped over her ears and she didn't move. She focused on her breathing and took her mind to a place where she did her best to tune out the overwhelming sound.

When a sharp pain stabbed through her jaw she realized she'd been clenching her teeth and hadn't been tuning the sound out at all.

The same process continued, off and on for so long she gave up trying to figure out what the time or even day was.

Trays came and went at what she had to assume were different intervals. It was the fifth or sixth when she couldn't ignore her thirst any longer. Whispering an apology to Oliver she made her way over and lifted the lid to find a sandwich and a small glass of water.

Her stomach groaned at the sight of the food but she ignored it and grabbed the water with a shaky hand.

Forcing herself to drink it slowly was difficult and when she was done with it she only wanted more. It hadn't been long before she barely made it to the toilet in time. Sweaty and weak she leaned in the doorframe as dry heaves wracked her body. It could have been poisoned, or it could have just been her body reacting to having fluids in such a long time. She didn't know, but she couldn't risk it again.

A hot throbbing pain was shooting through her leg now, and after she'd crawled back to the mattress she finally risked pulling up the hem of her skirt and peeled away a corner of the tape that covered the deeper wound above her knee.

Oliver was right, it needed stitches. The cut was several inches long and deep. Ragged, red edges were puffy and inflamed with fainter red streaks around it. She couldn't tell where it had even begun to heal and it was clearly infected. All she could do was grit her teeth and cover it back up.

She slumped against the hard concrete, exhausted and tried not to think about Oliver. Tears slipped down her cheeks that she didn't even bother wiping away.

The lights shut off again and the noises began. With a sigh she tipped sideways her eyes open and unstaring. She didn't fight it any longer, she couldn't. In seconds she was back in the basement of the lair, rubble crushing her as she watched Oliver die only feet away, just out of her reach.

When two sets of hands grabbed her by the arms and lifted her she didn't protest, she wasn't even sure it was happening. Her feet dragged the ground as she was taken out of the room. Her eyes kept sliding shut and she knew she should listen to the part of her mind that was screaming at her to wake up and fight but she couldn't.

She let her head fall forward, barely seeing the same nondescript doors and hallways she'd seen on her way in. Maybe it was just a dream. Maybe they weren't there.

Loud shouts came from nearby and they sounded familiar but she didn't know why. Suddenly the hands that were holding her up let go and she crumpled into a pile onto another concrete floor.

It didn't hurt, she thought maybe it should, but it didn't. More shouting could be heard and then a door slamming.

Then she was being lifted and placed on something soft. Hands held her face and she wanted to open her eyes but it was too hard. It was the silence that eventually pulled her down.

Something stroking her cheek made her try and wake up. Her eyes were hot and gritty and it took several tries before she could see anything other than a dark blur in front of her.

"Felicity," it sounded like Oliver, he sounded raw and desperate and she tried to turn her head because her Oliver had never sounded like that before.

He said it again and something in his tone made her try one more time. She could see him then, hovering over her, his normally short stubble longer than usual, brows drawn together in such concern she had to look twice. But it was the look in his eyes that took her aback. They were full of pain, and guilt, and...she didn't know what else.

But he couldn't be there. She was alone. Like she'd been alone in the lair when it had fallen down around her. Like she had been for five months when he ran to the island again.

Something touched her cheek and she jolted, eyes flying back open. She didn't even know she'd shut them.

"Felicity, can you hear me?" he asked, and she felt the touch again. His hand against her face. She turned into it slightly and hope filled his eyes.

Her mouth opened slowly and she tried to say his name but her tongue stuck to the roof of her mouth and her lips cracked painfully.

Oliver wiped something damp across her lips and it felt glorious on her overheated skin. He did it again and a tiny bit ran in her mouth giving her enough moisture to try and speak. "Oliver…" she rasped out, only half the word emerging.

"Hey, don't talk, it's okay." he told her, and the coolness covered her forehead and side of her face before dipping into her neck.

She tried to lick her lips but couldn't and he wiped them again. "You can't be here." she managed to get out with difficulty. He wasn't really there. He was just a figment of her imagination.

"Yes I can. They brought you back to me." he told her,

She didn't know what it was. His smell, or the earnestness in his voice, or the feel of him beneath her, but she let herself believe him.

"Oh," she gasped out, a solitary tear tracking down her cheek that he intercepted with his finger.

He leaned in a pressed cool lips to her forehead and her eyes slid shut at the contact. "I got a message to Digg." he whispered into her hair and the lids shot open in disbelief.

"They made me make a video, authorizing the board of trustees to pay out a ransom demand. I tapped out a message in Morse Code. Digg will see it." he told her and a tiny flare of hope grew within her.

She let out a sigh and leaned in towards him, just then realizing he held her across his lap, leaning against his chest.

"I'm so sorry you had to go through that." his lips were still pressed into her, his voice broken and she didn't know why.

She wanted to tell him it was okay and that she was fine, but she wasn't. So instead she said nothing.

"How long?" she managed to ask, hoping he knew she meant how long since she'd been separated from him.

He pulled her to him tighter before he answered and she was worried she wouldn't want to know. "It's been at least twenty-four hours."

She tried to give him a nod but couldn't. A day. It seemed longer, or maybe not that long at all.

The screaming of metal still rang in her head and she turned into him in hopes of getting it to stop. She felt his hand cup her head, rubbing soothing circles under her ear and across the back of her neck.

"You need to rest. The infection...it's not good. You've got a fever and you're dehydrated."

She lifted heavy lids to peek at him. He looked more tired than she'd ever seen him. "At least we're not handcuffed anymore." she said slowly, hoping to at least get half a smile.

She was rewarded and tried to return it as he leaned closer again, "That's too bad, I was beginning to get used to it." he said with forced levity.

"Maybe we can try it again later." she mumbled low, her words slurring and her brain too sluggish to fully understand what she said.

His chest rumbled slightly underneath her and his lips were on her temple again. She fell asleep wondering when she had missed the moment Oliver had started kissing her.

When she woke up all she could hear was a dull roar and the feel of something vibrating beneath her. Her eyes didn't hurt so much when she opened them. The first person she saw was Digg. There was a squeeze of her hand and Oliver was there. She looked at him quizzically and then Digg was leaning over her, placing a headset over her ears. A switch was flipped and she could hear them.

"Hey girl, you're in a helicopter on the way back to Starling City." Digg said gently and suddenly she realized she was laying on a stretcher in between them.

Oliver gave her a tight smile, "Digg came and got us out." he explained, his thumb in constant motion as it soothed over the back of her hand.

She turned her eyes back and gave their missing partner a grateful look. He just made a small shake of his head and she could see the guilt he was trying to hide even though there was nothing he could have done. She raised her empty hand slightly and Digg grabbed it.

"Go back to sleep." Oliver whispered and she did as he said, feeling truly safe for the first time in days.

She didn't wake up so peacefully. She came to gasping, a cry choked off in her throat as she heard the sounds again. Strong hands on her shoulders pushed her back but she fought. It wasn't until she heard Oliver speak in her ear that she relaxed. "Felicity! You're safe!" he repeated until she lay back, chest heaving.

She looked up at him surprised to see how close he was. She'd grabbed one of his hands and had it clasped against her abdomen. Slowly she let go of the death grip she had on him and let her head ease into the pillow.

"Okay?" he asked and she nodded.

"What was it?" he waited until her breathing was normal before he questioned her.

"The uh...the lair, after the device went off. I didn't get out..I got buried and you were there, and you..you died in front of me." she said in a dead voice she didn't recognize as her own.

He scrubbed a hand over his face and she saw the glimpse of a hospital bracelet peeking out from under his sleeve. She reached out and caught his hand, a flare of heat going through her at the contact. Without looking at him she ran her fingers under the edge of the band, much like she had done with the handcuffs.

"Fluids and observation." he said with derision, clearly not believing he needed to be admitted. "It was only for a few hours."

He turned sad eyes on her, "Did you have that dream before?" he asked suddenly, bringing the conversation back to the nightmare that had just woken her up.

"Only at first, after you left." she said without thought and saw the flare of regret that went across his face.

She took a deep breath and decided he needed to hear what had happened to her. "They...I don't know if it was just a lucky guess or if they knew somehow...but they kept playing these sounds of metal-"

He cut her off by laying a finger across her lips and she couldn't stop the gasp that left her. "Don't. You don't have to tell me." he said brokenly.

"No...I want to." she said shakily as his hand slipped away.

He took a long inhale through his nose and leveled her with a look so intense she could only hear him out. "You don't have to tell me. There was...there was a camera feed. They put it through onto the t.v. in the room. I saw...everything. I heard everything."

Her mouth dropped open in a shock as tears flooded her vision. She was partially shamed, and partially glad she hadn't been alone.

"They used psychological torture on you. It's common in situations like this, but the results are...effective." the way he spoke made her think he'd had firsthand experience and not just from watching her breakdown on the screen.

"The island?" her voice was so quiet she didn't know if he heard her, but at his tight nod she swallowed hard.

There was movement at the side of the bed as he lowered the rail and then he was right there. One of his hands cupped her cheek and made her look at him. "You were so brave. You have to know that. You didn't break. You were strong, and I'm so sorry you had to go through that." his voice broke as he pressed his forehead into hers.

His words washed over her like a balm, and he was the only one who could make her better. She tugged him closer and pulled back enough that she could see him. "Please," she more mouthed than spoke, but he knew what she meant.

In an instant he was lifting her slightly and sliding in beside her. His arm wrapped around her back and she turned into his chest, her head fitting perfectly into the spot beneath his shoulder. She let out a long ragged sigh and settled into him.

His lips trailed over her forehead, across her temple and the bridge of her nose, and the top of her cheek, and then they were at the corner of her mouth. She stilled and he only hesitated a moment before he put his mouth to hers. It was short and soft and filled her with warmth.

He didn't say anything, just stroked a hand over her hair. Amazingly she didn't feel awkward, or flustered. Something had changed between them. She knew they needed to talk, and it would come, but for now she was content to lay there and listen to his heartbeat while he held her.

She'd been released from the hospital two days later. Oliver had barely left her side. They hadn't talked yet but as the days went on she wondered if they really needed to.

A week had passed and she was back to work, and back in the lair. Oliver had a rough night and she'd listened over the comms with a tight chest until he walked down the stairs.

His eyes met hers across the space and everything they'd been ignoring and maybe avoiding was worked out in that moment.

She flew at him and he caught her up, actually stumbling back a step as she latched her mouth to his, kissing him with abandon. He'd returned it with fervor and they only stopped when he had her pushed against a pillar, sucking the soft skin of her throat between his teeth.

The next day she arrived early and found a square box wrapped with a green ribbon sitting in front of her keyboard. Her eyes cut around the room but she was alone.

When she lifted the lid she gasped. Laying inside, on tissue paper were a set of green fur lined handcuffs. Face flaming she held them up on one finger and discovered a note under them in Oliver's distinctive scrawl.

'It's later'

That was all the note had said and she had a vague recollection of babbling in her fever induced haze about maybe using handcuffs later. It appeared Oliver had remembered.

There was another piece of paper stuck inside and she took it out, to see it was the receipt. She almost threw it away when something made her turn it back over and look at it again. Her hand covered her mouth in shock when she realized he'd circled something.

The cuffs had been bought the day after she was discharged from the hospital.


End file.
